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Reunification Day Vietnam
April 30
Reunification Day in Vietnam, also known as Victory Day, Liberation Day, or Ngày Giải Phóng Miền Nam, marks the fall of Saigon in 1975, which signaled the end of the Vietnam War and the reunification of North and South Vietnam.
When is Reunification Day?
Reunification Day is celebrated every year on April 30.
The following is the list of Reunification Day from 2020 to 2049.
The History of Reunification Day?
After the First Indochina War ended in 1954, the Geneva Accords temporarily divided Vietnam at the 17th parallel into two parts:
1. North Vietnam: The Democratic Republic of Vietnam, led by the communist government under Ho Chi Minh, based in Hanoi.
2. South Vietnam: The Republic of Vietnam, a non-communist state supported by the United States and other Western powers, based in Saigon.
The intention was to hold national elections in 1956 to unify the country, but these elections were never held. This led to increasing tensions and ultimately, the Vietnam War from 1955 to 1975.
The war pitted the North Vietnamese Army (NVA) and the Viet Cong (communist guerrilla forces in the South) against the USA backed South Vietnamese Army (ARVN). It became one of the longest and deadliest conflicts of the 20th century, with massive casualties and destruction.
After the Paris Peace Accords in 1973 and the withdrawal of U.S. troops, the North continued its campaign to overthrow the South Vietnamese government.
On April 30, 1975, North Vietnamese tanks entered Saigon, the capital of South Vietnam. The South Vietnamese government surrendered unconditionally. The Reunification Palace (then the Presidential Palace) was captured, symbolizing the end of the war.
This event is seen by the Vietnamese government as the liberation of the South and reunification of the country.
On July 2, 1976, Vietnam was officially reunified as the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. Hanoi became the capital, and Saigon was renamed Ho Chi Minh City in honor of the North's revolutionary leader. April 30 was declared a national public holiday to commemorate the reunification.
