Foreign news agencies and media on October 13 published articles and photos on the national funeral of General Vo Nguyen Giap and Vietnamese people’s great respects towards their national hero.
According to the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), millions of Vietnamese were following the national funeral of Vietnam’s first General, who made his name well-known not only in the country but also all over the world with victories over the French army and then US army.
The US-based Associated Press (AP) reported that hundreds of thousands of people flooded the streets of Hanoi , the Vietnamese capital, on October 13 to bid a final farewell to a legendary war hero who led the poor Southeast Asian nation to victory over the French army and then the US army.
"Long live Gen. Vo Nguyen Giap," people chanted, many in tears, as his flag-draped coffin passed by on a truck-drawn artillery carriage, it said.
AP quoted a resident present in the crowd as saying "I feel like I lost one of my relatives,” adding that General Giap will live forever in the heart of Vietnamese people.
The news agency described the funeral as an event that has been unseen since President Ho Chi Minh passed away more than four decades ago. Some 150,000 people lined up over the past five days out side General Giap’s house to pay respects to him.
The country’s top leaders, along with veterans and diplomats paid their last farewell to the deceased. The national flag was blown at half-mast and entertainment events were cancelled.
Earlier, Reuters said that over the past week, hundreds of thousands of Vietnamese flocked to General Giap’s house to show their respects.
According to Bloomberg, since the passing of General Giap, Vietnamese clutching yellow daisies and umbrellas to shield against the hot afternoon sun have formed lines outside his home on Hoang Dieu Street in Hanoi that stretch nearly a kilometer to the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum to pay tribute to him.
General Vo Nguyen Giap passed away on October 4 at the age of 103. A two-day National Funeral for the General was held nationwide on October 12-13. He was buried in his home province of Quang Binh on October 13./.
