The President Ho Chi Minh Monument at the park named after him in the capital Havana. (Photo: Mai Phuong/VNA)

It is not difficult to find structures named after Vietnamese heroes or historical sites throughout Cuba and right in the capital Havana.

Cuban people have long been familiar with the names Vo Thi Thang, Nguyen Van Troi, Ben Tre... and can pronounce them clearly.

Outstanding among the many structures bearing the mark of Vietnam is the President Ho Chi Minh Monument at the park named after him in the capital Havana. After more than 20 years, this place has become a familiar space for those who love Vietnam.

Local people, from the elderly to the young, are familiar with the shade of the trees surrounding the Uncle Ho statue - a noble symbol of the special, exemplary friendship throughout history between the two peoples of Vietnam and Cuba.

The statue of President Ho Chi Minh at the park named after him in the capital city of La Habana. (Photo: Mai Phuong/VNA)

Architect Joel Díaz Gutiérrez was in charge of designing and supervising the construction of the statue, while the bronze bust was cast by Vietnamese artisans.

During his official visit to Cuba in October 2002, late Prime Minister Phan Van Khai presented this statue to Cuban friends. The construction was then completed on the occasion of the 113th anniversary of Uncle Ho's birth (May 19, 2003).

Architect Joel is now over 90 years old. Throughout his life, this is the work he is proud of and honored to have done. Mr. Joel spent most of his life cultivating the Cuba-Vietnam friendship and greatly admired the beloved President Ho Chi Minh.

Mr. Joel Díaz recalled that when he first started designing the monument, he spent many nights struggling to find the most vivid way to express the image of Vietnam, the extremely great but very simple and humble man of Uncle Ho and the important milestones in his life.

Architect Joel Díaz Gutiérrez next to the monument of President Ho Chi Minh, which he designed and supervised the construction of. (Photo: Mai Phuong/VNA)

Architect Joel researched a lot of documents about Uncle Ho before coming up with the idea. Each component and detail of the monument was designed with immense love and respect for the great Uncle Ho.

“In Cuba, there are hundreds of monuments to historical figures, including foreigners, but for the great Uncle Ho, a completely different representation is needed,” he said.

Located on one of the largest streets in the capital La Habana, Ho Chi Minh Park is 5,600 square meters wide. The statue of President Ho Chi Minh is located on a red marble base, 54 square meters wide, symbolizing the 54 ethnic groups of Vietnam. In the middle of the marble base is a five-pointed star made of yellow flowers - the image of the Vietnamese national flag. The stone pedestal is made of white marble without any decoration or patterns, reminiscent of the image of Uncle Ho “a life of purity, without gold or silver.”

Cuban students lay flowers in memory of Uncle Ho. (Photo: Mai Phuong/VNA)

After the project was inaugurated, a Cuba-Vietnam Friendship Association with members being officials and employees of a number of production facilities and people in the neighborhood where Ho Chi Minh Park is located was established to take care of, preserve and protect the Uncle Ho monument.

Over the past two decades, the Friendship Association has participated in welcoming hundreds of official delegations from Vietnam to lay flowers at the Uncle Ho monument, including those at the highest level. This project has also been visited by many other foreign delegations, paying their respects to our nation’s beloved leader and learning about the unique “Vietnamese corner” of La Habana./.