Many photos, documents, and objects featuring National Party Congresses are on display at an exhibition that opened at Hoa Lo Prison in Hanoi on January 8.(Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) - Many photos, documents, and objects featuring National Party Congressesare on display at an exhibition that opened at Hoa Lo Prison in Hanoi on January8.
The exhibition aimsto mark the upcoming 13th National Party Congress and the 91st anniversary of the Communist Party of Vietnam (February 3).
It also honourssoldiers who made great contributions to the struggle for national liberation,including those who were detained at Hoa Lo and other prisons.
Visitors had a chance to meet the relatives of the soldiers and witnesses to history at theopening ceremony.
The exhibitionwill last until the end of April.
Hoa Lo Prison isa special historical relic in Hanoi, built by French colonialists in 1896 toimprison Vietnamese patriots. Called Maison Centrale, it was one of the largestprisons in French Indochina. Many patriots and revolutionary leaders of Vietnamwere held captive there, such as Phan Boi Chau, Luong Van Can, Ho Tung Mau, andNguyen Luong Bang, as well as five Party General Secretaries: Nguyen Van Cu,Truong Chinh, Le Duan, Nguyen Van Linh, and Do Muoi.
From August 5,1964, to March 31, 1973, part of the prison was used to hold American pilotswho were shot down during bombing raids against North Vietnam. The prison waseuphemistically called the “Hanoi Hilton” by prisoners. “Alumni” of Hoa Lo includePete Peterson, who later became the first US Ambassador to Vietnam, and JohnMcCain, the late US Senator.
The Government transformedpart of the prison into a historical relic site in 1993. Located in the southeastreaches of the old prison, this part was preserved, renovated, and upgraded. Thereis also a monument dedicated to Vietnamese patriotic and revolutionaryfighters./.
VNA
