SON LA PRISON HISTORICAL RELIC

So after 3 times of construction and expansion, Son La Prison has a total area of ​​2,170 m2. In particular, a row of underground cells located 3m deep underground was also built by the French colonialists during the expansion of the prison and was hidden by the kitchen area above. The underground cell system includes 5 individual cells and 2 collective cells, including 1 dark cell. Son La Prison is a very solidly built place, the walls are made of stone mixed with bricks, the roof is covered with icy tiles. The beds for prisoners are made of stone, with smooth cement on the surface, the outside is equipped with a leg shackle system along the length of the floor. With such a design, diseases have arisen and spread extremely quickly due to the Lao winds of the Northwest with the scorching heat in the summer, in addition to the freezing frosts in the winter. Since then, Son La prison has been likened to "an open coffin, just waiting for the prisoners to die and be buried".

14 groups of political prisoners were exiled by the French colonialists to Son La Prison with a total of 1,013 prisoners from 1930 to 1945, among them were many comrades who were members of the Central Committee, the Regional Party Committee, the City Party Committee and many key cadres of the Party. More than ever, when facing the dark crimes of those enemies, the communists shone with their integrity and lit the fire of revolutionary struggle around the Northwest mountains and forests, which was the first fuse that created the explosion of a success in the August General Uprising in 1945. This place became a great revolutionary school, training and nurturing for the Party and the Vietnamese Revolution outstanding communist soldiers such as: To Hieu, Le Duan, Truong Chinh, Nguyen Luong Bang, Van Tien Dung, Le Duc Tho, Nguyen Van Tran, Le Thanh Nghi, Tran Quoc Hoang and other loyal comrades.

After peace was restored, Son La Provincial Museum renovated and embellished the Prison relic three times in 1980, 1994, 2009 - 2010.

In addition to the above places, the historical relic of Son La Prison also has two famous places: Ban Heo banyan tree - the place of communication between the Son La Prison Party Cell and the Central Party Committee and Son La Prison Martyrs' Cemetery (Goc Oi Cemetery), this is the resting place of more than 60 heroes and martyrs who heroically sacrificed here.

The historical relic of Son La Prison has become a red address in the work of educating revolutionary traditions for generations of Son La ethnic groups and people across the country.

Son La Prison was ranked as a national relic in 1962 and a special national historical relic on December 31, 2014.