Young people of the 20th century: Revolutionary awakening for the nation

Two great scholars of the Phan family and the awakening of the nation

Entering the 20th century, after invading our country, the French colonialists began to exploit Vietnam. To serve the colonial exploitation, the French were forced to build industrial facilities, plantations, develop transportation and services. The capitalist mode of production began to be introduced into the Vietnamese economy. The Chinese education system was abolished... Those changes dramatically transformed the social structure. The working class and the bourgeoisie began to form. A new type of intellectual class emerged.

However, national contradictions still existed. The Vietnamese people still yearned and were determined to gain national independence. However, feudal ideology and the scholar-gentry were powerless in the face of this great and difficult task. The responsibility fell on the shoulders of new groups. That was the working class, intellectuals and national bourgeoisie.

Two great scholars Phan Boi Chau (left) and Phan Chu Trinh. Photo archive

Entering a new era requires a change in thinking about the path to national salvation. Phan Boi Chau and Phan Chu Trinh are the hinges of this process of changing awareness. They are the first to gather, guide and lead a new national salvation campaign. But each has a different choice. Phan Boi Chau founded the Duy Tan Association, advocating armed violence and preparing forces for the national restoration campaign by traveling to Japan, a "same race, same culture" and a newly emerged capitalist empire. Phan Chu Trinh is different. He advocates the Duy Tan movement to save the country following the path of: "Enlightening the people's intelligence, strengthening the people's spirit, improving the people's livelihood".

Regardless of who these two leaders were, their main force was still the youth. More than 200 students who followed Phan Boi Chau to Japan were all young people. Students of the Dong Kinh Nghia Thuc School, who participated in the Duy Tan movement following Phan Chu Trinh's ideology, were also young people. The two Phan patriots were the ones who "called the soul of the country" (Phan Boi Chau), gathering patriotic youth for the cause of national salvation in the first decades of the 20th century to "renew the nation" (Phan Chu Trinh).

In the early years of the 20th century, Vietnamese youth absorbed “new books and new literature” and perceived a new and different path to save the country than their predecessors. They had both the generosity of heroes saving the country and the rational political thinking of the new era.

The movement to demand the release of Phan Boi Chau and mourn Phan Chu Trinh was a gathering and demonstration of the strength of patriotic youth throughout the country. From this movement, new patriotic organizations were born and the core force was still the youth. These were the Phuc Viet Party (1925), the Hung Nam Association, the Vietnam Revolutionary Comrades Association, and the Tan Viet Party founded in Vinh (Nghe An) by intellectuals, former political prisoners, teachers, students, and youth such as Tran Mong Bach, Tran Phu, Ha Huy Tap, Ton Quang Phiet, Dang Thai Mai, Dao Duy Anh, etc. The policy of these organizations was to "Overthrow empire, build an equal and fraternal society...". The Nationalist Party (1927) was founded by Nguyen Thai Hoc and young students with the aim of: "Make a national revolution, use force to overthrow the feudal colonial regime, to establish a Vietnam.DindependentcpeaceAt the same time, help oppressed peoples in their struggle for independence, especially neighboring countries: Laos and Cambodia.

Some students studying abroad in the Dong Du movement. Photo: National Archives Center I

In another direction,After the failure of the Dong Du to Japan, some important members of the Duy Tan Association, represented by Dang Thuc Hua, found their way to Siam, and from there to China. In Siam, they organized the Plow Camp - a production organization that lived and worked for the revolution. Since 1909, they welcomed hundreds of young people from Nghe Tinh to train them and then sent them to Guangzhou.

Young people from Siam to Guangzhou, typically Ho Tung Mau and Le Hong Son, established Tam Tam Xa (Tan Viet Thanh Nien Doan - 1923) with the purpose of“Union of intellectuals among all Vietnamese people, regardless of borders or political parties, as long as they are determined to sacrifice all personal interests and interests, and to do their best to restore human rights in Vietnam.”.

There was another direction of going abroad. That was the youth who went to France to study. They were exposed to French bourgeois revolutionary culture and ideology as well as Marxism, gradually becoming enlightened and organizing patriotic activities. Typical figures include: Nguyen An Ninh, Phan Van Truong, Nguyen The Truyen, Ta Thu Thau, Duong Bach Mai, Nguyen Van Tao...

The patriotic young man from Kim Lien commune, Nam Dan district (Nghe An) Nguyen Tat Thanh also went to France and European and American countries, but not to study but proactively threw himself into hardship to find a way to save the country. Nguyen Tat Thanh contacted Phan Chu Trinh and a group of patriotic young men studying in France and soon coordinated their actions.

On June 19, 1919, Phan Chu Trinh, along with Phan Van Truong, Nguyen The Truyen and Nguyen Tat Thanh, drafted the "Demand of the People of Annam" to send to the Versailles Conference, jointly signed as "Nguyen Ai Quoc".

Nguyen Ai Quoc and the Vietnam Revolutionary Youth Association

After the event of sending the "Demand of the Annamese People" to the Versailles Conference, Nguyen Tat Thanh, with the new name Nguyen Ai Quoc, joined the French Socialist Party and then became a founding member of the French Communist Party. After that, he went to the Soviet Union, working for the Third Communist International. From a young man seeking a way to save the country, Nguyen Ai Quoc became an international communist soldier. In 1925, he returned to Guangzhou (China) to organize and lead the Vietnamese proletarian revolution.

Nguyen Ai Quoc at the Tours Congress in 1920. Photo archive

Upon returning to Guangzhou, under the alias Ly Thuy, Nguyen Ai Quoc contacted Phan Boi Chau and members of Tam Tam Xa, propagated the proletarian revolutionary line and established the Communist Youth Union with 9 members and recruited 5 probationary communist party members including: Ho Tung Mau, Le Hong Son, Le Hong Phong. At the same time, he organized a patriotic youth team of 8 people, mainly sent by Dang Thuc Hua from Trai Cay - Phi Chit (Xiam). This youth team all had the surname Ly, the surname of Ly Thuy - the alias of President Ho Chi Minh at that time.

After a period of training, from these core members, in June 1925, Nguyen Ai Quoc founded the Vietnam Revolutionary Youth Association, abbreviated as the Youth Association. The Association's purpose and objectives are: "Strive to win over the majority of workers, peasants and soldiers, and lead these suffering masses to unite with the world proletariat to overthrow French imperialism on the one hand,feudal; on the one hand participate in the world revolution to eliminatecapitalismthe whole world to docommunism".

After its establishment, the Association sent people back to the country to recruit people to attend training courses in Guangzhou or to study at the Oriental University (Soviet Union). At the same time, the Association established branches at all levels in the country; published newspapers.Adolescent,Revolutionary Soldier;recruit people to study military in the Soviet Union or Whampoa.

House No. 13/1 (now No. 248-250), Van Minh Street, Guangzhou City (China) - headquarters of the Vietnam Revolutionary Youth Association, where Nguyen Ai Quoc opened training classes to train cadres for the Vietnamese revolution in the years 1925 - 1927. Thanh Nien Newspaper - propaganda agency of the Vietnam Revolutionary Youth Association.

In 1927, the domestic chapters were established. In 1929, the Youth Association organization was established and developed throughout the country, playing an important role in spreading Marxism-Leninism and becoming the nucleus leading the movement to fight against the French.

(To be continued)