I guess these medals are memorabilia. Both are issued by a cultural
institution called "Deutscher Kulturbund". The one from 1972 was maybe given to visitors of the "VIII. Bundeskongress", meaning 8th general congress of the Kulturbund. This congress was held in
October 1972 in Berlin. The one from 1970 was probably handed out during a similar congress, but it doesn't say so on the medal.
Both have the same legend and image. "Vietnam siegt" on the side with the image means "Vietnam is/will be victorious". On the other side it reads "Solidarität hilft Siegen" meaning "solidarity helps winning". As a socialist state, GDR was of course supporting Vietcong during the war in Vietnam. So these medals are witnesses of the political situation of the time.
Western Germany on the other hand was on the side of USA at the time. However, during the
student protests of 1968 and after, many western German students showed solidarity with Vietcong against US too (like in USA itself and elsewhere). There was even a
program (pdf-file, German) to find parents in Western Germany for Vietnamese children, who lost their families during the war (terre des hommes, around 250 children were adopted).
Kind regards,
Atalaya
"...und noch heute ist es in
Neapel höchst ergötzlich, die Münzen mit dem Kopfe Murats friedlich neben denen mit dem Kopfe Ferdinands im Gebrauch zu sehen."
Ferdinand Gregorovius, 1853
