Mr. Huynh Thuc Khang and the issue of Vietnam's sovereignty over Hoang Sa
It has been 65 years since Mr. Huynh Thuc Khang rested in peace on Thien An Mountain, Quang Ngai (April 21, 1947), but every time we remember him, we cannot help but be moved and recall his writings in the Tiếng Dân newspaper about Vietnam's sovereignty over the Hoang Sa archipelago, of which he was the editor-in-chief.
In which, he paid special attention to scientific arguments to prove our country's sovereignty over Hoang Sa archipelago.
From mid-1938 onwards, the dispute over the Paracel Islands (called Xisha by China) between France and Japan became extremely fierce. In March 1939, Japan occupied the Paracel Islands, which belonged to Vietnamese territory.
In this article, he mentioned that the dispute over the Paracel Islands has become serious:"As mentioned in the previous Tiếng Dân article, the Paracel Islands are just a few small islands that serve as a shelter for seabirds in the open sea, and no one needs to pay attention to them. But during the Sino-Japanese war, it became a serious issue on the international stage, which is clearly unexpected."And he affirmed:"According to recent reports, we have collected documents about the Paracel Islands to prove that the islands are part of the country's property.
Uncle Ho, Mr. Huynh Thuc Khang in the first Government of Vietnam
He listed a wealth of documents:Miscellaneous Records of Phu Bienby Le Quy Don,Dai Nam Nhat Thong Chiboth the previous version and the version re-edited by Cao Xuan Duc,The Essentials of the Dynastyof the two dynasties Gia Long-Minh Mang,The Royal Dynasty Constitutionby Phan Huy Chu orXia Ji Wenby Duong Quoc Dung,Voice ScreenandLegend of the Eastby Ly Van Thuc,Sea History and Historyby Nguyen Thong... all of which mentioned Hoang Sa and our country's sovereignty from that time. Among them, Mr. Huynh emphasized the value ofMiscellaneous Records of Phu Bienby the precise assertion of administrative, geographical, economic, and military factors by a profound scientist. Through the article"The vestiges of Parasels Island in Vietnamese history and the value of the Phu Bien Tap Luc"First of all, Mr. Huynh emphasized that the issue of sovereignty over the Hoang Sa archipelago must be based on Chinese documents as evidence:"...we discovered another unexpected thing: a bunch of Chinese books of our ancestors that have long been abandoned, with damaged margins and tattered covers, mostly young people, considered them borrowed books, dead characters, not worth paying attention to, now due to the issue of the Paracel Islands, they have become very valuable documents with not a few related to international law.".
From there, he relied on ancient historical documents to prove that Hoang Sa island is under the management of our country; specifically:
1. First of all, he relied on the document Phu Bien Tap Luc by Le Quy Don at the end of the Le Dynasty to write: "... in Quang Ngai prefecture, Binh Son district, An Binh village near the sea, there are many islands in the sea, including Hoang Sa island about 30 miles long. Then there are the products: bird's nest, seabirds, conch, mother-of-pearl, tortoise shell, sea cucumber... History records that Lord Nguyen set up a Hoang Sa team of 70 people to take turns going to the island to collect seafood, traveling for 3 days and nights to the island, leaving in March every year and returning in August; there is also a copy of the minutes of Thuyen Duc Hau, who was in charge of the Hoang Sa team, clearly stating that each year they picked up how many pounds of tin, how many scoops of gold, tortoise shell, how many pounds of bird's nest, and sometimes they picked up bronze, guns, money... (things that were probably items from sunken ships here and there). The most valuable is the official dispatch of Quan Chanh Duong, the district chief of Van Xuong, Huynh Chau prefecture (China) sent to Lord Nguyen in Thuan Hoa When escorting two members of the Hoang Sa team who were drifted here; in "Thuan Hoa", the document recorded: "In the 19th year of the Qianlong era (1754, the 17th year of the Hien Vo dynasty), a soldier named Cat Vang, from An Binh village, Chuong My district, Quang Ngai prefecture, An Nam country, on the 7th month went to Van Ly Truong Sa to collect marine objects, 8 members went ashore to collect them, leaving 2 members to guard the boat, unfortunately a storm broke, the anchor rope broke, the boat drifted to the Chinese beach, the district magistrate of Van Xuong ordered the boat to return to the country, Lord Nguyen Thuan Hoa ordered the captain Thuc Luong Hau to write a reply letter".
2. Based on Phan Huy Chu's Lich Trieu Hien Chuong, he wrote: "Cong Ha Ky Van by Duong Quoc Dung under the Phong Vuc section mentioned... in addition to the Quang Ngai sea area, there is Hoang Sa island from Sa Ky estuary going east, it takes 3 days and nights to reach the place, the sandbar is broken and connected, several dozen miles cannot be counted, few people have come here".
3. He relied on Man Hinh Thi Thoai and Dong Hanh Thi Thuyet of Ly Van Thuc recorded during his trips to China and Lucon (Philippines): In the 12th year of Minh Mang (1831), he went to Fujian and wrote: "The boat went to the right wharf, the place called "Van Ly Thach Duong" was all golden sand (Hoang Sa) also called "Van Ly Truong Sa"; He had a poem with the verse: Van Ly Truong Sa is extremely dangerous, That Chau is crazy and unjustly accused. In the 13th year of Minh Mang (1832), he went to Lu Tong (Lucon), the Philippines at that time belonged to Spain. The boat from Quang Ngai went east, and was lost by the wind in the Van Ly Truong Sa area. He had an introduction saying: A cluster of sand islands emerged in the middle of the sea, to the west is the Quang Ngai sea, to the north it connects to the Quang Dong and Fujian seas, to the east it connects to the Lu Tong sea, to the south it extends... it is an extremely dangerous place for boats.
4. Next, he cited Dai Nam Nhat Thong Chi, both the previous version and the version recently compiled by Cao Xuan Duc, and the Trieu Chinh Yeu Thuc Luc, both the previous dynasty and the Minh Mang dynasty, and the Bien Su Cuong Giam version by Nguyen Thong to prove: The Paracel Islands are part of our Southern country, because it was the Southern people who occupied them first and did all the work on that island...
Thus, according to Mr. Huynh Thuc Khang, regarding the issue of sovereignty over the Hoang Sa archipelago, it is necessary to pay attention to the following factors:
1. The dispute over the Paracel Islands has been going on since the late 1940s.
2. Any country that has sufficient evidence and early data on letters, wills, land laws and settlements left by its ancestors, as well as ancient documents affirming sovereignty over this archipelago, has scientific arguments to affirm that the sovereignty of the Hoang Sa archipelago belongs to it.
3. It is necessary to use Han Nom documents and ancient documents to find scientific basis for Vietnam's sovereignty over Hoang Sa archipelago.
4. It is necessary to pay attention to studying the Nguyen Dynasty on the issue of protecting national border sovereignty, especially sea and island borders.
5. Among all ancient documents, the work Phu bien tap luc by Le Quy Don is the most valuable document on the sovereignty of Hoang Sa archipelago for Vietnam.
65 years have passed, but the concerns, thoughts, and teachings of Mr. Huynh Thuc Khang about the country and the sovereignty of the sea and islands still retain their historical value. Remembering him, we not only remember a man who "did not need title, did not need benefits, did not crave wealth" and only "strived for the people's freedom and the country's independence"; remembering his writings about the sovereignty of the Hoang Sa archipelago, we are more deeply imbued with his morality, personality, and responsibility towards the people and the country.
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