Participants are watching a documentary film on Vietnam-Netherlands cooperation in the war time at the ceremony (Source: the Vietnamese Embassy in the Netherlands)Hanoi (VNA) - A ceremonywas recently held in Nijmegen city, the Netherlands, to mark 50 years ofpeople-to-people relations between Vietnam and the European country, which beganwith the establishment of the Netherlands-Vietnam Medical Committee (MCNV) in 1968.
The event was attended by Vietnamese Ambassador to the Netherlands Ngo Thi Hoaand Dutch friends who had joined movements against the US’s invasion war inVietnam in the 1960s-1970s.
Ad Spijkers, who was once representative of the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation(FAO) in Vietnam and also an active member of the movement in support of Vietnamin Nijmegen, recalled the development of the solidarity movement with Vietnam inthe city in the 1960s-1970s.
Many organisations and groups in supportof Vietnam were formed in Nijmegen, especially at local universities, he said,adding that along with universities of the Netherlands, Nijmegen University starteda number of cooperation projects with Vietnam in the fields of agriculture,technology and health.
After its establishment, MCNV launched a cooperation programme with Vietnam byproviding the country with medical assistance in Dong Ha district of thecentral province of Quang Tri, one of the localities hardest hit by the war, hesaid.
In 1974, a hospital was built in Dong Ha with funding donated by the DutchGovernment and equipment granted by Dutch universities. The hospital wasofficially put into operation in 1977.
During wartime in Vietnam, Dutch film producer Joris Ivens, who hailed from Nijmegen, arrived in Vietnam and produced many documentaryfilms about the war, which helped international friends understand more aboutVietnam’s struggle for justice as well as heroic spirit for peace, independenceand unity of the Vietnamese people.
According to Spijkers,after the war, universities of Nijmegen city provided many scholarships forVietnamese students.
From 1978-1980, hundreds of scientists and engineers working in the fields of health,pharmacy, technology, agriculture and irrigation were trained in theNetherlands through universities’ projects, he said.
Spijkers noted that the solidaritymovement between the Dutch and Vietnamese people in the past laid a solidfoundation for the enhancement of cooperation between the two nations, andbetween Vietnam and Nijmegen in particular.
Spijkers also recalled hisimpression during his trips to Vietnam, especially in 1976 and 1984 when he wasa FAO representative in the country, as well as his memories during the timewhen he lived in Hanoi and witnessed a great change as Vietnam began its DoiMoi (reform) policy in 1986.-VNA
The event was attended by Vietnamese Ambassador to the Netherlands Ngo Thi Hoaand Dutch friends who had joined movements against the US’s invasion war inVietnam in the 1960s-1970s.
Ad Spijkers, who was once representative of the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation(FAO) in Vietnam and also an active member of the movement in support of Vietnamin Nijmegen, recalled the development of the solidarity movement with Vietnam inthe city in the 1960s-1970s.
Many organisations and groups in supportof Vietnam were formed in Nijmegen, especially at local universities, he said,adding that along with universities of the Netherlands, Nijmegen University starteda number of cooperation projects with Vietnam in the fields of agriculture,technology and health.
After its establishment, MCNV launched a cooperation programme with Vietnam byproviding the country with medical assistance in Dong Ha district of thecentral province of Quang Tri, one of the localities hardest hit by the war, hesaid.
In 1974, a hospital was built in Dong Ha with funding donated by the DutchGovernment and equipment granted by Dutch universities. The hospital wasofficially put into operation in 1977.
During wartime in Vietnam, Dutch film producer Joris Ivens, who hailed from Nijmegen, arrived in Vietnam and produced many documentaryfilms about the war, which helped international friends understand more aboutVietnam’s struggle for justice as well as heroic spirit for peace, independenceand unity of the Vietnamese people.
According to Spijkers,after the war, universities of Nijmegen city provided many scholarships forVietnamese students.
From 1978-1980, hundreds of scientists and engineers working in the fields of health,pharmacy, technology, agriculture and irrigation were trained in theNetherlands through universities’ projects, he said.
Spijkers noted that the solidaritymovement between the Dutch and Vietnamese people in the past laid a solidfoundation for the enhancement of cooperation between the two nations, andbetween Vietnam and Nijmegen in particular.
Spijkers also recalled hisimpression during his trips to Vietnam, especially in 1976 and 1984 when he wasa FAO representative in the country, as well as his memories during the timewhen he lived in Hanoi and witnessed a great change as Vietnam began its DoiMoi (reform) policy in 1986.-VNA
VNA
