In a historic step, France’s lower house of parliament has voted unanimously to recognise the suffering of people repatriated to the mainland from the colonies in Indochina in the 1950s. The bill, brought by the Socialists, proposes a national day of remembrance on 8 June, compensation and the creation of memorial sites.
The crushing defeat for the French at Dien-Bien-Phu in Vietnam in 1954 brought an end to France’s century-long colonial presence in Indochina, which included Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia.
