Learning from President Ho Chi Minh's responses to press interviews.

Today, in an "open society" both domestically and internationally, contact with the press has become a daily activity. However, reading and listening to many people's interview responses reveals much room for improvement to enhance the depth of content and the vividness of expression. The best approach is to reread and reflect upon, and learn from, the way President Ho Chi Minh once answered press interviews.

Uncle Ho was not only the founder of revolutionary journalism in Vietnam.MalePresident Ho Chi Minh himself was a seasoned journalist. He wrote many articles and gave numerous interviews to domestic and foreign press. According to the Complete Works of Ho Chi Minh published by the National Political Publishing House in 2011, from the successful August Revolution until his last breath, he gave 95 press interviews, the last one just 49 days before his passing! The journalists who interviewed him were very diverse, from many countries and continents, and held various political views.

President Ho Chi Minh had a friendly conversation with intellectuals in the medical field. Photo: Archival material.

This immediately tells us that we should not avoid but actively and proactively answer press interviews because this is a very effective channel for making the world understand the situation as well as the policies and guidelines of our Party and State, gaining sympathy and support for the revolutionary cause of our people, combating false narratives, and in many cases sending necessary messages and signals to serve the diplomatic struggle.

Uncle Ho's responses were incredibly rich and covered a wide range of issues: from domestic to international affairs, from domestic policy to foreign policy, from politics to socio-economics, from security to defense, and even his personal life… In nearly 100 interviews, Uncle Ho's responses contained countless profound thoughts and philosophies that this article cannot fully address.

Despite the vast scope of the content, President Ho Chi Minh's interviews always demonstrated a spirit of "conciseness and depth," never speaking at length, often just a few sentences, and never using vague or ambiguous language. He expressed the same idea in many forms, flexibly and adaptably, being both resolute and flexible. For example, in 1945-1946, when various internal and external enemies threatened the independence, sovereignty, and unity of the country, in 11 interviews, he consistently emphasized his determination to fight for independence and unity: He would affirm, "We are not against all of France, all of the French people. If there are French people who want to come here to negotiate peacefully…the fundamental condition…is that the French must recognize Vietnam's independence."Male..." [1]; or take the noble ideals of the French Revolution to affirm the will of our nation: "The Vietnamese peopleMaleThere is a very normal desire to be independent… we have been fighting from the beginning until now, just like the French. The three words Liberty, Equality, Fraternity have made France a progressive nation, and we only want to fight to be like that" [2]. This way of expressing it both contributes to strengthening one's argument, puts the opponent in a difficult position to refute, and wins over broad public opinion.

In interviews, Uncle Ho always went straight to the point, without beating around the bush, while maintaining a proactive and assertive attitude, sometimes humorously mocking the tactics of some journalists who tried to find fault. At a press conference on December 26, 1945, concerning the reconciliation agreement between the Viet Minh, the Vietnam Revolutionary Alliance, and the Vietnam Nationalist Party, a journalist asked if the 14 points of the agreement published in the newspaper "Vietnam" (the official mouthpiece of the Vietnam Nationalist Party) were correct. Uncle Ho immediately countered: "Yes, but one more point should be added: both sides have agreed on it, so it shouldn't be published. I don't understand why the newspaper 'Viet'..."Male"It was published again. Perhaps that newspaper forgot?" Then, in response to another journalist's sarcastic question, "What does it mean that the 'Union' newspaper published that the Viet Minh Government resigned?", Uncle Ho retorted: "There was no Viet Minh Government, and if there wasn't one, how could it resign?" [3].

In his responses, Uncle Ho never shied away from difficult or sensitive questions, while skillfully handling the situation in a way that implied: "Yes, but it can be understood as no; no, but it can be understood as yes."

When our country's revolution had just succeeded, due to the circumstances at the time, our Party declared its "self-dissolution," but continued to operate under the form of the Association for the Study of Marxism. Many foreign journalists tried every means to get Uncle Ho to affirm himself as a "communist" in order to divide our country from other countries and to mislead some domestic groups about communism.

Once, a journalist asked: "I heard that you declared you have communist leanings, but do you think Vietnam cannot be communistized within 50 years?" He replied: "Everyone has the right to study an ideology. As for me, I have studied Marxism. Two thousand years ago, Jesus Christ said that we must love our enemies. That has not yet been achieved."

As for when Marxism will be realized, I cannot answer. For communism to be realized, there must be industry, agriculture, and everyone must be able to develop their full potential. In our country, those conditions are not yet sufficient" [4].

In many cases, Uncle Ho answered very briefly, decisively, and clearly. In an interview with the newspaper Frères D'Armes in 1948, when asked what he hated most, Uncle Ho answered "Evil"; and what he loved most, he replied "Good"; regarding what he desired most, he affirmed: The independence of my country and of all countries in the world; and regarding what he feared most, he clearly stated: I fear nothing. A patriot fears nothing and absolutely must not fear anything! [5]

When communicating with the press, as well as when speaking, Uncle Ho often used folk proverbs full of imagery and easy to remember. Answering a question about diplomacy, Uncle Ho emphasized: “We must rely on strength. If strength is strong, diplomacy will be successful. Strength is the gong and diplomacy is the sound. The bigger the gong, the louder the sound” [7].

Here, I would like to share a few impressions I've gained from rereading President Ho Chi Minh's interview responses. I wish that journalists and everyone who interacts with the press would diligently study and learn from President Ho Chi Minh, avoiding avoiding the press, refraining from rambling speeches, unclear ideas, and unskillful responses that are detrimental to the country's image. Connecting this to the "Studying and Following the Moral Example of Ho Chi Minh" campaign is perhaps not unreasonable. In the long run, if someone were to dedicate more time to researching, in greater depth and comprehensively, both the content and methods of President Ho Chi Minh's interactions with the press, it would be truly commendable.

1. Ho Chi Minh, Complete Works, National Political Publishing House, Vol. 4, p. 85

2. As above, p. 213

3. As above, p. 145

4. As above, p. 315

5. As above, Volume 5, p. 522

6. As above, Volume 4, p. 85

7. As above, p. 147

Vu Khoan - According to QĐND-M