Warm military-civilian relations at the Vietnam-Laos border

Hoai Thu - Bui Manh• DNUM_BHZBBZCACB 10:39

(Baonghean.vn) - Phuc Son Border Guard Station is located on the border area of Phuc Son commune (Anh Son) and Thanh Duc commune (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 them "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 boxes ofmedicine, medical supplies donated to the "Border Medicine Cabinet" to serve the medical examination and health care for people, undertaken by the working group of Phuc Son Border Guard Station since 2018.
Since then, the “Border Medicine Cabinet” model has been maintained, and the military doctors of Phuc Son Border Post have quietly cared for and protected the health of thousands of people every year. However, there are still concerns and worries.

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 have been in even more difficult situations. 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 solutions.

Philanthropists donated medicine for Phuc Son Border Guard Station's military doctors 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 examination and treatment 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 need for health care very well. After examining people, he felt extremely troubled when he could not find enough medicine to treat them.

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 emergency care 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 those supplements, he had to give up…

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

Keep the border peaceful
Upstream 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 cluster, Xay Cham Pon district, Bolikhamxay province, Laos. In which, Phuc Son commune spans a fairly large area of nearly 15 thousand 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 thousand hectares and the number of kilometers of border is 13,368 km with 3 border markers.

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

With rugged mountainous terrain, infrastructure in some places has not kept up with development requirements; harsh weather and climate; uneven educational level, 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, a 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 the story of the end of October 2021, when 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 aboutculprit"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 1 day later thanks to the quick investigation coordination of the provincial police force, 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 and selling, storing narcotics", seized 5 kg of crystal meth, 48 synthetic drug pills, 0.315g of heroin; discovered 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 with the 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, and keep the peace for the people to work and live with peace of mind,” affirmed Chairman of Phuc Son Commune People's Committee Nguyen Van Trang.

Officers and soldiers of Phuc Son Border Guard Station help people overcome floods. Photo: Hai Thuong

Major Nguyen Ba Ky - Deputy Political Commissar of Phuc Son Border Guard Station said that since 2020, 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 Solidarity" houses to give to poor households in the commune. The unit also coordinated with the Fatherland Front of Phuc Son and Thanh Duc communes 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 Solidarity" 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 resources, 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. Then, he advised his superiors to complete 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 cooperated with the military to build "Great Solidarity" houses for the people of Thanh Duc commune (photo above), gave breeding cows to poor households and helped 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 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 response to this situation, from 2015 to present, Phuc Son Border Guard Station has advised and proposed to 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 terms of security, order and religion; and 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, 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 Post 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.