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Fayetteville mayor drops Vietnam sister-city plan

Mayor Tony Chavonne said Friday that he will no longer pursue plans for a sister-city relationship between Fayetteville and a city in Vietnam.

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Fayetteville Mayor Tony Chavonne
FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. — Mayor Tony Chavonne said Friday that he will no longer pursue plans for a sister-city relationship between Fayetteville and a city in Vietnam.

Chavonne heads a local committee that is planning a 10-day celebration of Vietnam veterans in 2011 that will culminate on Veterans Day. One of the early suggestions for the celebration was to become sister cities with Soc Trang in southern Vietnam's Mekong River Delta.

The idea has prompted persistent criticism in recent months, and on Friday, Chavonne said the time is just not right for a sister-city relationship.

During the Vietnam era, nearby Fort Bragg trained about 200,000 soldiers for war, and Fayetteville became known as "Fayettenam" during anti-war protests. The city has tried for decades to shed that image.

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