‘Beloved General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong: Eternally in the Hearts of Friends Worldwide’

Grief and Respect: A Tribute to General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong

On the morning of July 26, a solemn scene unfolded at the Vietnamese Embassy in Beijing. A 77-year-old woman, Vu Thuc Hue, dressed in dark attire, arrived to pay her respects to General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong. With a heavy heart, she bowed respectfully before the late leader and then quietly penned her condolences in the memorial book, expressing her deepest sympathies in Chinese.

Vu Thuc Hue, a 77-year-old Beijing resident, signs the condolence book for General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong at the Vietnamese Embassy in Beijing on July 26.

Hue, a former nurse at the Guilin Nanxishan Hospital in China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, has a special connection to Vietnam. Her hospital once treated wounded soldiers and officials from South Vietnam. Just two months ago, she attended the 70th-anniversary celebrations of the Dien Bien Phu victory in Vietnam. Upon hearing the news of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong’s passing, she felt a deep sense of sorrow and made the journey to the embassy to pay her respects.

“I decided to come to the Vietnamese Embassy in Beijing to bid farewell to him, carrying with me gratitude and respect,” Hue said, reflecting on the significance of her visit.

International Mourners Unite in Grief for General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong

Among the sea of mourners waiting to pay their respects to General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong in Hanoi was a familiar face to many young Vietnamese and Laotians—Maysaa, a 22-year-old Lao girl known for her fanpage “Maysaa – Co gai Lao,” which has garnered 356,000 followers in Vietnam. Dressed in black, Maysaa joined the crowd, her hands wiping away the sweat in the humid air.

Maysaa, a 22-year-old Lao national, waits in line to pay her respects to General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong.

Maysaa rode her motorbike for two hours from Quang Ninh to Hanoi, followed by a ten-hour wait, all to pay her respects to the late leader. She couldn’t hold back her tears as she witnessed the outpouring of grief from those around her, realizing the profound love and respect the Vietnamese people had for General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong. To Maysaa and the Lao people, he was an important figure who supported them during his lifetime.

The mourners who gathered to bid farewell to General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong represented a diverse range of ages, professions, and nationalities. They came together, united in their sorrow, to honor the memory of a leader who was deeply loyal to the Party and devoted to the people.

Elton Amandio Brito, a South African student studying in Vietnam, joins the line to pay his respects to General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong. Image source: VOV

Among them was Elton Amandio Brito, a South African student studying at the Vietnam National University of Agriculture, who lined up for nearly a kilometer to express his condolences. “I have lived in Vietnam for 6 years and love the country and its people,” he shared, explaining his connection to the late leader.

Marvin Everseen and Mika Birchwood, two 22-year-old tourists from Amsterdam, the Netherlands, also joined the mourners on Tran Thanh Tong Street. Having traveled across Vietnam, they felt a deep respect for the late General Secretary and wanted to pay their respects like any other Vietnamese citizen.

Scott Lee, a South Korean citizen and teacher in Vietnam, joins the line of people waiting to pay their respects to General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong. Image source: NDO

Scott Lee, a 31-year-old South Korean citizen and teacher in Vietnam, also joined the line of mourners at the Nguyen Cong Tru – Lo Duc intersection. Having learned of the passing of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong through the media, he felt a deep connection to the Vietnamese leader and was determined to pay his respects.

Min Young Kim, a Korean resident in Vietnam for seven years, expresses his grief upon visiting General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong. Image source: NDO

Min Young Kim, a Korean who has called Vietnam home for seven years, could not contain his emotions as he stood before the coffin and portrait of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong. “I love Vietnam, I love the Vietnamese people,” he said, his voice heavy with grief.