On occasion of Tet Lunar New Year, the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union had launched a campaign titled “Let’s Build Truong Sa” aimed at raising funds to build the archipelago and promote patriotism amongst individuals and organizations.
The campaign has spread quite fast with University and secondary school students collectively sending 3,200 letters to soldiers of the border guards in Binh Phuoc and Tay Ninh Provinces bordering Cambodia and 2,000 letters to Naval Officers.
Hundreds came to donate to Truong Sa with around VND 58 million donated to the ‘Let’s Build Truong Sa’ campaign so far, showing clearly the unity and patriotism of the Vietnamese people.
Major business enterprises such as Eximbank, Vinamilk, Sabeco, Saigon Co-op, Cienco 5, HCMC Golf Association and the Vietnam Football Federation used their budgets and also mobilised contributions from staff to donate to Truong Sa. Each enterprise donated billions of dong.
Fahasa, a major book distributor, called on all its guests to donate to Truong Sa and finally managed to raise VND70 million ($3,333) for the campaign.
Vinacafe Bien Hoa raised VND630 million ($30,000) at an event held to reward its customers.
Since September, organisers have called on people to send SMS messages for donations. More than 365,000 people have sent SMS messages, resulting in donations of VND7.7 billion ($367,000).
The campaign is meaningful, having a great impact on Vietnamese youth and the community as well.
On the same day, Duong Quang Ha, Chairman of Vietnam Fatherland Front said that the fund “For beloved Truong Sa, our motherland frontier” has presented the Naval Brigade 957 a 50 seater van worth VND 1 billion. The money came from young and elderly, poor and rich, from veterans to teachers in HCMC who all supported the campaign.
