Vietnam to hold State funeral for Party General Secretary July 25-26

A funeral adhering to national mourning etiquette will be held for late Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong on Thursday and Friday.

Trong passed away at 1:38 p.m. last Friday (July 19) due to old age and severe illness at the age of 80 after a “period of illness,” despite the wholehearted treatment and care offered by the Party, State, leading medical experts, and his family, reads a special communiqué.

He will be laid in state at the National Funeral Hall, No.5 Tran Thanh Tong street, Hanoi, where the ceremony will start at 7 a.m. today (Thursday) for people to pay their respects, followed by a memorial service at 1 p.m. on Friday (July 26).

The burial ceremony is to take place at 3 p.m. on Friday at Mai Dich Cemetery, Hanoi.

Ceremonies for the late Party General Secretary will also be held simultaneously at the Reunification Hall in Ho Chi Minh City and in his hometown in Dong Hoi commune, Dong Anh district, Hanoi.

Vietnam Television and Radio the Voice of Vietnam will broadcast the ceremonies live in Hanoi and HCMC.

During two days of national mourning, national flags will be flown at half-mast at State offices and public places, and recreational and entertainment activities will be suspended.

Throughout his 60 years of work, Party chief Nguyen Phu Trong made great and exceptionally outstanding contributions to the glorious revolutionary cause of the Party and the nation. He was conferred the Gold Star Order, the 55-year Party membership badge, and many other noble orders and medals from Vietnam, foreign countries, and international organizations, notes the communiqué.

The communiqué was released last Saturday by the Communist Party of Vietnam's (CPV) Central Committee, the National Assembly, the President, and the Government, and the Central Committee of the Vietnam Fatherland Front.

Trong achieved a professor ranking and held a Ph.D. in politics.

He was Party General Secretary for three consecutive terms, from the 11th to the 13th (from 2011 until his death). As Party chief, he was also Secretary of the Central Military Commission.

Trong was a member of the Politburo, the nation’s supreme decision-making body, for six tenures, and a member of the Party Central Committee for seven terms.

He held dual positions, General Secretary and State President, between October 2018 and April 2021 after President Tran Dai Quang died while in office.

Before becoming Chairman of the National Assembly between 2006 and 2011, Trong was Secretary of Hanoi’s Party Committee for six years.

He is also remembered for his aggressive stance against corruption among Party cadres and in the private sector, a campaign popularly known as "the burning furnace".

A board for the funeral comprises 35 members, including:

1. To Lam, member of the Politburo, State President, head of the funeral board.

2. Pham Minh Chinh, member of the Politburo, Prime Minister.

3. Tran Thanh Man, member of the Politburo, Chairman of the National Assembly.

4. Luong Cuong, member of the Politburo, Permanent Member of the Party Central Committee's (PCC) Secretariat.

5. Do Van Chien, member of the Politburo, President of the Vietnam Fatherland Front's Central Committee.

6. Le Minh Hung, member of the Politburo, PCC's Secretary and Chief of Office.

7. Tran Cam Tu, member of the Politburo, PCC’s Secretary and Head of PPC's Inspection Commission.

8. Phan Dinh Trac, member of the Politburo, PCC’s Secretary and Chairman of PPC's Commission for Internal Affairs.

9. Nguyen Trong Nghia, member of the Politburo, PCC’s Secretary and Head of PCC's Commission for Information and Education.

10. Nguyen Hoa Binh, member of the Politburo, PPC's Secretary and Chief Justice of the Supreme People's Court.

11. General Phan Van Giang, member of the Politburo, Minister of National Defense.

12. Nguyen Xuan Thang, member of the Politburo, Director of the Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics and Chairman of the Central Theoretical Council.

13. Bui Thi Minh Hoai, member of the Politburo, PCC's Secretary and Secretary of Hanoi’s Party Committee.

14. Nguyen Van Nen, member of the Politburo and Secretary of HCM City's Party Committee.

15. Le Hoai Trung, PCC's Secretary and Head of PCC's Commission for External Relations.

A 27-member funeral organizing board is headed by Luong Cuong, member of the Politburo, Permanent Member of the Party Central Committee's (PCC) Secretariat.