Special regime to preserve Uncle Ho's sacred Testament

Dr. Hoang Anh Tuan said that President Ho Chi Minh's Testament is the original document written by President Ho Chi Minh from May 10, 1965 to May 19, 1969. The Testament is a document of great significance, an extremely valuable cultural heritage of our Party and nation. The Testament was recognized as a national treasure in 2012 (in Decision No. 1462/QD-TTg, dated October 1, 2012 of the Prime Minister). The Testament is currently kept and preserved at the Central Archives of the Communist Party of Vietnam.

Uncle Ho's will is preserved under special regime.

Regarding the handover and reception of the Will, Dr. Hoang Anh Tuan added that on March 4, 1987, according to the decision of the Central Party Secretariat, President Ho Chi Minh's Will was transferred to the Archives Department of the Central Party Office (now the Archives Department of the Central Party Office) for receipt, storage and preservation.

Regarding the current status of the Will, Dr. Tuan informed: “The Will is made of paper, with 8 sheets, with the following sizes: The copy written on May 10, 1965 has 3 sheets measuring 21 x 27 cm; The copy written in May 1968 has 3 sheets measuring 18.5 x 26 cm, 1 sheet measuring 18.5 x 24 cm; The copy written on May 10, 1969 has 1 sheet measuring 20 x 30.5 cm”.

According to the description of Dr. Hoang Anh Tuan, the 3 pages of the Will written on May 15, 1965 were typed in blue ink (typed on one side) on normal paper, with President Ho Chi Minh's signature at the bottom of page 3, next to President Ho Chi Minh's signature is the signature of the witness, Mr. Le Duan - First Secretary of the Party Central Committee. The four pages of Uncle Ho's Will in May 1968 were written in blue ink, 2 pages were written on both sides, 2 pages were written on one side. Interspersed with lines written in blue ink are lines written in red ink, with some crossed out. One page dated May 10, 1969 was written in blue ink on the back of the Vietnam News Agency's Special Reference News page 15a, published on May 3, 1969. Interspersed with lines written in blue ink are lines written in red ink, with some crossed out.

According to Dr. Hoang Anh Tuan, the Will is being preserved by the Central Party Office Archives under a special regime. However, the papers are all of poor quality, yellowed, and some lines are slightly blurred. In order to minimize the impact of the original Will on the physical condition of the document, on September 14, 2015, the Central Party Office Archives issued Official Dispatch No. 952-CV/CLT "Regarding the request for a copy of President Ho Chi Minh's Will".

With the approval of the Central Party Office leadership, the Will was copied into 3 color copies. These 3 color copies are currently kept together with the original Will.

The stilt house where President Ho Chi Minh wrote his Will.

Dr. Hoang Anh Tuan added that Uncle Ho's Testament is a summary of practical experience in revolutionary leadership and the direction of national development. The Testament also condenses the personality of the leader, hero of national liberation of Vietnam, outstanding cultural figure Ho Chi Minh, in which each word, each sentence, each paragraph written is the result of deep contemplation, distillation of his thoughts, feelings and intelligence, is a program of action in the struggle for national liberation and rebuilding the country after the country's reunification.