Online photo leads Vietnamese family to martyr's remains after 53-year search

During recent renovations at Trieu Nguyen Martyrs' Cemetery in Ba Long Commune, Quang Tri Province, local officials photographed the headstones of fallen soldiers whose relatives had yet to be identified and posted the images along with relevant details on social media.

Around July 27, when Vietnam marked the 79th anniversary of War Invalids and Martyrs' Day, Chau's relatives happened to see one of these Facebook posts and recognized his name on a headstone.

Thanks to the post, the family learned for the first time that Chau had died in Ba Long in 1973 during the war in Vietnam.

Upon seeing the photo, the family contacted commune authorities to verify the information, according to Phan Thanh Lieu, deputy chairman of the Ba Long Commune People's Committee.

Once the details were confirmed, they immediately arranged a trip from their home in Lao Cai Province to the central province of Quang Tri to visit Chau's grave.

"After seeing the photo and information about the grave posted on Facebook, the family contacted the commune to verify the information. When the local authorities confirmed it was correct, the family rushed to the cemetery," Thieu Thi Lieu, Chau's granddaughter, said.

The family arrived in Ba Long earlier this week and was accompanied by local officials to the cemetery after completing the necessary procedures at the commune, she added.

She said the family had spent years hoping to locate Chau's grave but had been unable to search for it because of financial difficulties.

The family initially planned to bring Chau's remains back to his hometown, but after seeing that his grave was in a clean, well-maintained cemetery and was being carefully tended, they decided to leave him there and visit the site every year, she added.

Ba Long authorities said local officials are continuing to review, photograph and post information about the graves of fallen soldiers whose relatives have yet to be identified.

The commune posts information about two or three graves each day to increase the chances of relatives living far away recognizing their loved ones and locating their graves.

Ba Long has two martyrs' cemeteries with a total of 330 graves.

Chau's case comes as Vietnam is carrying out a nationwide 500-day campaign launched on March 15, 2026, to accelerate the search for, recovery and identification of fallen soldiers' remains.

The campaign will run through July 27, 2027, when Vietnam will mark the 80th anniversary of War Invalids and Martyrs' Day.

As of August 12, the campaign had recovered 1,715 sets of martyrs' remains, or 24.5 percent of its target, the Vietnam News Agency reported, citing the National Steering Committee for the Search for, Recovery and Identification of Martyrs' Remains.