'Hô Chí Minh (May 19, 1890 - September 2, 1969) was a Vietnamese revolutionary and statesman, who later became Prime Minister (1946-1955) and President (1955-1969) of North Vietnam.' Ho Chi Minh City was originally named Saigon, and that term is still frequently used, but was officially changed in honor of the leader of the new communist government in 1975 when it merged with the surrounding province of Gia Dinh. This event is often called the 'Fall of Saigon' in America and the 'Liberation of Saigon' in Vietnam.
Until the end of the Vietnam War, Ho Chi Minh was the capital of a French colony, and its more than seven million residents live near the Mekong River delta on the banks of the Saigon River, 60km from the South China Sea.
Victim of a tepid past with a French flare, walking through the streets of Ho Chi Minh is a unique experience: 'the city's core is still adorned with wide elegant boulevards and historic French colonial buildings' while the air remains communist and the people act conservative. There are 95 elected deputies to the People's Council who choose the 13 members of the People's Committee that function as the principal local governmental entities. Two heads of that committee are the top governmental officials, but the Communist Party of Vietnam is still ultimately in charge of the country.
And yet, the word 'saigon' is used to suggest chic or modern, and some treasured city landmarks include structures as opposite from each other as the Reunification Hall, the Revolutionary Museum, and Notre Dame Cathedral. The media is the most developed in all of Vietnam, and their higher education system is known throughout the country. There are, 'about 50 universities and colleges with a total of over 300,000 students in such places as: Vietnam National University with 35,000 students, the most important university in the Southern Region, consisting of 6 main member schools: The University of Natural Sciences (formerly Saigon College of Sciences); The University of Social Sciences and Humanities (formerly Saigon College of Letters); The University of Polytechnic (formerly Phu Tho National Institute of Technology); The International University, Faculty of Economics and the newly-established University of Information Technology. Some other important higher education establishments include: HCMC University of Pedagogy, University of Economics, University of Architecture, University of Medicine and Pharmacy, University of Agriculture and Forestry, University of Law, University of Technical Education, University of Banking, University of Transport, University of Industry, Open University, University of Sports and Physical Education, University of Fine Art, University of Culture and the Conservatory of Music. The RMIT University with about 2,000 students, the unique foreign-invested higher-education unit.
