Warm military-civilian relations at the Vietnam-Laos border

Hoai Thu - Bui Manh• November 17, 2021 10:39

(Baonghean.vn)- Phuc Son Border Guard Station is located on the border area of Phuc Son commune (Anh Son) and Thanh Duc (Thanh Chuong). Here, officers and soldiers in green uniforms are protecting the border day and night, together with the people building prosperous villages...

Lack of medicine for the poor

Phuc Son (Anh Son) and Thanh Duc (Thanh Chuong) are two communes adjacent to the Vietnam - Laos border, people still call it "Duc - Son area". In 2019, we visited Duc - Son many times, including trips carrying gifts from kind-hearted people for the people. Those gifts were very special, not like normal gifts but boxesmedicine, medical supplies donated to the "Border Medicine Cabinet" to serve the health examination and care for people, undertaken by the working group of Phuc Son Border Guard Station since 2018.
Since then, the model of "Border Medicine Cabinet" has been maintained, the military doctors and nurses of Phuc Son Border Guard Station have quietly cared for and protected the health of thousands of people every year. However, there are still worries and concerns.

One day at the end of October 2021, the President of the Women's Union of Anh Son district, Ms. Nguyen Thi Thao, called us to express her concerns about mobilizing funds to support the "Border Medicine Cabinet". Ms. Thao confided that for the past 2 years, due to the severe impact of the Covid-19 epidemic, the poor people in the 4 Cao Veu villages were already in difficulty and now they are even more miserable. And the mobilization of money to buy medicine for the people has also fallen into a lull, making the women very worried but have not found any positive solution.

Philanthropists donated medicine for the Phuc Son Border Guard Station's medical staff to provide free medical treatment to people in four border villages in Phuc Son. Photo: HT

Every year, the District Women's Union tries to mobilize only over 10 million VND to donate medicine cabinets. This amount of money is too little compared to the daily medical needs of thousands of people in the Phuc Son border area.
Further expressing his concerns, military doctor Nguyen Ba Luong confided that he had been here for many years so he understood the people and their health care needs very well. After examining them, he felt extremely troubled when he could not find enough medicine to treat the people.

Most recently, Luong Van Khoi in Cao Veu 3 village had an accident on his way home from school, causing a serious injury near his eye. After providing first aid and treating Khoi’s wound, Dr. Nguyen Ba Luong also gave him a general examination and discovered that he needed to supplement his micronutrients with some nutritional supplements. However, because he did not have the necessary supplements, he had to give up…

“The station’s working group mainly examines and treats common illnesses and provides emergency treatment for people’s wounds. Therefore, they only need medicines to treat common illnesses, but the budget is entirely mobilized by the station and associations and unions, so it is always in short supply,” Dr. Nguyen Ba Luong shared.

Keep the border peaceful
Upstream of the Giang River from the border commune of Thanh Duc (Thanh Chuong), toPhuc Son Border Guard StationStationed at Veu 1 village, Phuc Son commune (Anh Son), we were informed by Lieutenant Colonel Dang Xuan Thanh - Head of Phuc Son Border Guard Station that the unit's management area spans two communes in two districts, Thanh Duc commune and Phuc Son commune. The station's protected area has 5 border markers with a 19.03 km long border adjacent to the Phon Muong - Muong Cham village cluster, Xay Cham Pon district, Bolikhamxay province, Laos. In particular, Phuc Son commune spans a fairly large area of nearly 15,000 hectares. Phuc Son has 5,662 km of long border and 2 border markers. Thanh Duc commune has a slightly larger area than its "brother" Phuc Son - 17,000 hectares and 13,368 km of border with 3 border markers.

Phuc Son Border Guard Station guards and ensures security in the border area. Photo: HT

With the characteristics of rugged mountainous terrain, infrastructure in some places has not kept up with development requirements; harsh weather and climate; uneven educational level of the people, in addition to potential complex factors regarding security and order such as illegal religious propaganda, drug crimes, violations of border regulations, use of electric shocks, chemicals for fishing on rivers and streams, complicated developments of the Covid-19 epidemic... have been and are having a great impact on the work of ensuring security and order in the area. To maintain peace in that vast border area, the green-uniformed soldiers of Phuc Son Border Guard Station have quietly set their footprints all over the border here. Those actions have made "the people satisfied" as Mr. Lo Duong Tien, Thai ethnic, a prestigious person of Veu 3 village, Phuc Son commune said.
During the conversation about the participation of the soldiers in the protection of security and order, Mr. Tien also mentioned that at the end of October 2021, the people of Veu 4 village, Phuc Son commune were excited and scared when they heard that Mr. VVK, who lived in the same village, had suddenly died. "We were very confused when we heard that Mr. VVK had died, then we learned more information aboutperpetrator"The suspect who killed Mr. K is the brother-in-law," said Ms. Vi Thi Xoa in Veu 4 village. Regarding this incident, the leader of Phuc Son commune said that the perpetrator was arrested one day later thanks to the quick investigation coordination of the Provincial Police, Anh Son District Police and the support of information collection from Phuc Son Border Guard Station, promptly reassuring public opinion.
Lieutenant Colonel Dang Xuan Thanh - Head of Phuc Son Border Guard Station said that every year, the station regularly advises and coordinates with localities to organize activities to maintain security, order, and prevent and combat crimes in Duc - Son area. In the first 9 months of 2021 alone, the station coordinated to arrest and prosecute 3 criminal cases, 4 subjects with the act of "Illegal buying, selling, and storing of narcotics", seized 5 kg of crystal meth, 48 synthetic drug pills, 0.315g of heroin; discovered, arrested and handled 7 cases, 15 subjects of administrative violations were fined more than 20 million VND. In particular, during the time when the Covid-19 epidemic broke out in many localities in the province, the green-uniformed soldiers here worked day and night to coordinate with localities to implement "All people participate in preventing and combating Covid-19 and illegal entry and exit"; Organized for more than 4,000 households in Thanh Duc and Phuc Son communes to sign a commitment to implementation, and installed 15 mailboxes to report illegal immigration in the area.

“Because you are always devoted to the people and the village, the people are also one of the main and valuable sources of information that helps the unit promptly verify and effectively combat incidents as soon as they arise. On the other hand, the people also identify Phuc Son Border Guard Station as a reliable address for them to place their trust, report incidents to receive quick support to resolve, keeping the peace so that the people can work and live with peace of mind,” affirmed Chairman of the People's Committee of Phuc Son Commune Nguyen Van Trang.

Officers and soldiers of Phuc Son Border Guard Station help people overcome the flood. Photo by Hai Thuong

Major Nguyen Ba Ky - Deputy Political Commissar of Phuc Son Border Guard Station said that from 2020 to now, the unit has consulted and coordinated with the Fatherland Front at all levels to call for support of 450 million VND; sent officers and soldiers to help with over 200 working days to build 8 "Great Unity" houses to give to poor households in the commune. The unit also coordinated with the Fatherland Front of Phuc Son commune and Thanh Duc commune to review and complete the dossier to report to the Provincial Border Guard Command to request the Provincial Fatherland Front Committee to support 210 million VND to build 7 "Great Unity" houses for households in difficult circumstances who are living in temporary houses.
Strengthening grassroots Party organizations
Before 2018, the Party Cell of Veu 4 village, Phuc Son commune had only 3 party members, including 1 local party member, Mr. Ha Van Nep, and 2 additional party members from Phuc Son Border Guard Station and Phuc Son Commune Cultural Post Office who came to participate in activities together. "At that time, I was assigned to participate in activities at Veu 4 Party Cell and could not help but worry about the situation at that time. The Party Cell only had 1 local party member who was the Secretary and Head of the village, and his leadership skills were limited," Captain Nguyen Cong Thao - Head of the Mass Mobilization Team of Phuc Son Border Guard Station recalled.

To help Veu 4 Party Cell, Thao guided, found sources, mobilized, trained and recruited 2 more party members, a police officer and a member of the Farmers' Association, into Veu 4 Party Cell in early 2020. Next, he advised his superiors to improve the personnel, helping Veu 4 Party Cell escape the risk of no longer having a Party Cell, and was commended and rewarded by Anh Son District Party Committee.

The organizations coordinated with the military to build "Great Unity" houses for the people of Thanh Duc commune (photo above), give breeding cows to poor households and help people harvest rice. Photo: BM

Mr. Nguyen Cong Binh - Secretary of the Party Committee of Phuc Son Commune said: "The Border Guard staff and Party members have proactively grasped the situation; promptly advised and coordinated with local Party committees and authorities to firmly consolidate grassroots Party organizations; and at the same time coordinated with functional forces to resolve complicated issues and incidents that occurred. That has contributed significantly to maintaining political security and strengthening national defense and security in the area.

Chairman of the People's Committee of Phuc Son commune Nguyen Van Trang (far left) guides and inspects people growing tea. Photo: Hoai Thu

In Thanh Duc commune, in the past, the order and quality of activities of some hamlet and village party cells in the border area were still limited and lacked depth. In this situation, from 2015 to now, Phuc Son Border Guard Station has advised and proposed the Standing Committee and the Provincial Border Guard Command to mobilize and appoint 6 cadres to strengthen economic and social development advice in Thanh Duc and Phuc Son communes. At the same time, the Party Committee of Phuc Son Border Guard Station has chaired and coordinated with the Party Committees of the two border communes to assign 18 Border Guard Party members to temporarily operate in 7 weak hamlet and village party cells and party cells with potential complex factors in security, order and religion; assigned 21 border guard Party members to be in charge of 126 households in the border area. This work has been helping people in Phuc Son (Anh Son) and Thanh Duc (Thanh Chuong) communes to have a stable life and have the motivation to rise up to eliminate hunger and reduce poverty.

Saying goodbye to Duc Son area, we silently admired the soldiers in green uniforms - those who are silently keeping the border peaceful day and night, wholeheartedly serving the people and being trusted and loved by their own people. "The affection of Duc Son people for Phuc Son Border Guard Station has never changed, it is as close as lips and teeth", village elder Le Van Viet in Veu 1 village, Phuc Son commune happily confided.