Nearly 1,000 overseas Vietnamese gathered in a meeting to celebrate the Lunar New Year with leaders of Ho Chi Minh City on January 25th.
In the cozy atmosphere of the meeting, many overseas Vietnamese said that the young Vietnamese generation, including young overseas Vietnamese will contribute actively to the development of the country.
Meetings with overseas Vietnamese have been organised annually by the City on the occasion of the Lunar New Year. This is also a good chance for the leaders of the City to listen to recommendations and proposals of the overseas Vietnamese.
In 2010, 18 overseas Vietnamese were presented certificates of merit by Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee for their contribution in many fields.
“We need young people, within and outside the country, to build bridges for the country,” said Nguyen Van Cong, Head of an overseas Vietnamese group that helped build 120 bridges for people in the remote areas in Vietnam.
“Most of the people in our group are older,” he added.
Vietnamese-French Nguyen Van Cong said that his group has connected with more than 20 young overseas Vietnamese who are students and post-graduates in France, Australia, Japan and Canada.
He believes that these young people together with young intellectuals in Vietnam will continue their efforts to build more bridges for the people in poor rural areas.
“We believe that when the old people tried their best, the young ones cannot ignore and they will join us,” Mr. Cong said.
Meanwhile, Dr. Nguyen Dinh Uyen, a Vietnamese-American who teaches at Ho Chi Minh City International University said that “I’m happy when I am praised but I am sad as my young partners are not here with me to receive this merit. I cannot do anything without them.”
According to Mr. Uyen, students and his young partners in the telecommunication research group of Ho Chi Minh City International University started to link with each other, research hard and understand each other better. This young group was said to introduce their works that can be applied in practice.
“I completely believe in the Vietnamese young generation,” Mr. Uyen said.
As a Vietnamese-Japanese who has been teaching and had contacts with students at Ho Chi Minh City University, Prof. Dang Luong Mo said that the young Vietnamese are intelligent and progress quickly.
“The future of the country is in the hands of this golden generation,” Mr. Mo said.
Architect Nguyen Huu Thai, from Canada, said that he has two sons in Canada and the U.SA. This year, he took his wife and two sons to Vietnam to work.
“Though they were successful abroad, they desired to return to their fatherland to connect their spiritual feelings and regard it as a chance to overcome challenge,” he said.
According to Mr. Thai, in the past Vietnam received a wave of old overseas Vietnamese who wanted to return to the country to retire and relax, now it is the time to receive young intellectuals.
“Their return proves that the young overseas Vietnamese are not only aware of the true value of the national tradition but also the country’s opportunities to develop,” said Mr. Thai.
Source: VN Express
Translated by Ngoc Hung