Campaign Letter No.2: “What Do We Want to Build? And How Do We Want to Develop?”
CAMPAIGN LETTER NO. 2
“What Do We Want to Build? And How Do We Want to Develop?”
At the 50th Anniversary of Settlement and Freedom celebration held at The Atrium, Federation Square (9 May 2026), a community member candidly suggested that the Xây Dựng và Phát Triển (Building and Development) team should clearly explain: what do we want to build, and how do we intend to develop? We sincerely welcome that valuable suggestion, and we offer the concrete achievements of the 50th Anniversary Exhibition as our answer to the community.
We warmly invite you to view photos from the 50 Years of Settlement and 50 Years of Freedom ceremony held on 9 May 2026 at Federation Square via the links attached for updates on the 2026-30 Community Executive Committee election.
| Buổi lễ kỷ niệm 50 Định Cư 50 năm Tự Do tại The Atrium, Federation Squar… Shared album · Tap to view! |
I. WHY COMMEMORATE 50 YEARS?
Fifty years ago, on 30 April 1975, North Vietnamese communists forcibly seized South Vietnam, bringing the Second Republic of Vietnam to an end. Hundreds of thousands of Southern Vietnamese refused to live under communist rulers. They risked their lives crossing treacherous seas, leaving everything behind in search of Freedom. And though they were forced to leave their homeland, there was one thing our forebears were determined to take with them: the Yellow Flag with Three Red Stripes, the flag of the Fatherland, Honour, and Duty; a flag of righteousness, belonging to a people who refused to lose their dignity even as they lost their country.
The 50th anniversary is an occasion for us to record in history the heroic and sorrowful story of those indomitable boat people; to honour the generation that came before us; to pass on a sense of identity to children and grandchildren born and raised in Australia; and to affirm the meaningful contributions of the Free Vietnamese community to multicultural Australia. Above all, it is an occasion to let the Yellow Flag fly before the eyes of the Australian people, so the world knows that flag is immortal.
II. WHAT HAVE WE BUILT?
1. The Special Exhibition Subcommittee
As early as August 2025, the Executive Committee established a Special Exhibition Subcommittee, led by Solicitor Nguyễn Tân Hải as Head and Mr Nguyễn Duy Nhạc as Deputy Head, with a dedicated team including Advisers Mrs Huỳnh Bích Cẩm and Mr Phạm Văn Hợp, and members Mr Trần Thanh Vân, Mr Nguyễn Hữu Thiện, Ms Liên Thu, Mrs Hoàng Kim Ánh, Ms Nguyễn Kim, and Mr Nguyễn Công Hà. Their mission was to mobilise resources, organise, and deliver exhibitions both within the community and in partnership with Australian institutions.
2. A Travelling Museum
With financial support from the State Government, the local councils of Maribyrnong, Brimbank, Melbourne, Yarra, the Vietnamese Australian Women’s Association, and generous community donors, the Subcommittee has over the past year continuously organised dozens of exhibitions, including:
· Vietnamese Community Tết Festival and SEMVAC Tết 2025
· Hùng Kings Commemoration at the National Ancestor Temple
· 30 April 2025 Commemoration at the Community Activity Centre
· Federal Conference on 14 and 15 June 2025 at Fitzroy Town Hall
· 70th Anniversary of the Republic of Vietnam (26 October and 2 November 2025) at the Community Activity Centre
· 50 Years of Settlement and 50 Years of Freedom on 9 May 2026 at Federation Square
· Upcoming on 13 and 14 June 2026: Celebrating 50 Years Since the Founding of the Vietnamese Community of Victoria, to be held at Collingwood Town Hall
This is our mobile Museum. The 50th anniversary of settlement serves as the foundation from which we promote the cause of Freedom to Vietnamese people and fellow communities across Victoria.
3. Building Community Connections
The exhibitions have brought together imagery of activities from the Republic of Vietnam Veterans Association, the Women’s Association, various community organisations, religious groups, Vietnamese language schools, and youth groups, faithfully and vividly reflecting the rich life of the Vietnamese Community in Victoria.
4. Building Cultural and Artistic Connections
Over the past three years, the arts scene encompassing singing, dance, and cải lương has truly flourished. At the 9 May 2026 event alone at The Atrium, Federation Square, 16 dance groups, one cải lương group, and two Falun Gong groups participated in an open-air setting that attracted large numbers of passersby who stopped to enjoy the performances and view the exhibition.
The role of the Entertainment Sub-Committee in bringing the community together is absolutely vital. We will dedicate a separate article to this topic.
III. YOUR VOTE MATTERS
What we have accomplished is not a promise; it is evidence. Our approach is simple: say less, do more, and do it well.
Fifty years ago, South Vietnamese gave up everything to find word: Freedom. On fragile boats adrift on vast and unforgiving seas, many carried the Yellow Flag hidden in their hearts and minds, because it was the only remaining symbol of a country, an ideal, and a dignity they were determined to preserve.
Today, we hold in our hands the right to vote freely, a right that millions of our compatriots back home can only dream of. Please do not let that vote become a blank page, or fall into the hands of those who do not sincerely wish to build. Our commitment is to build a community united under the Yellow Flag.
We solemnly pledge to continue strengthening the community; to continue bringing the Yellow Flag to local councils, multicultural festivals, schools, and parliaments across Victoria; to continue nurturing the arts; and to continue advocating so that the voice of the Free Vietnamese is heard as it deserves to be.
We respectfully invite you to cast your vote for the Building and Development Community Team for the 2026 – 30 term.
“Freedom is not a gift from the heavens but a sacred legacy preserved in blood, passed on through awareness, and expressed each day through the Yellow flag we raise and the vote we cast.”
Building and Development Community Team
Yours Respectfully,
Nguyễn Quang Duy
Head of Team and incumbent President of the Vietnamese Community of Victoria
