Nghe An native Le Thi Bach Cat was posthumously awarded the title 'Hero of the People's Armed Forces'.
Le Thi Bach Cat is a daughter of the coastal town of Cua Lo and is a resilient and brave female commando. In 2024, she was posthumously awarded the title "Hero of the People's Armed Forces" by the President.
On September 20, 2024, the President signed Decision No. 934/QD-CTN on posthumously awarding the title "Hero of the People's Armed Forces" to Lieutenant General Dong Sy Nguyen - former member of the Politburo, former Vice Chairman of the Council of Ministers, former Commander of the Truong Son Command and martyr Le Thi Bach Cat - former member of the District Party Committee, former Secretary of the District Youth Union, former Secretary of the Propaganda and Armed Forces Party Cell of Districts 2 - 4 (now District 1, Ho Chi Minh City).
The posthumous awarding of the title “Hero of the People's Armed Forces” is a worthy recognition for Lieutenant General Dong Sy Nguyen and martyr Le Thi Bach Cat for their exceptionally outstanding achievements in the resistance war against American imperialism and in defending the Fatherland.
Particularly in Nghe An, the posthumous award of martyr Le Thi Bach Cat is a great honor for the people of the province.
Le Thi Bach Cat was born on October 10, 1940, the youngest child in a Confucian family in Nghi Thuy commune, Nghi Loc district, Nghe An province (now Nghi Thuy ward, Cua Lo town). In 1958, after passing the entrance exam to the Central College of Sports Education, she was retained by the school as a lecturer.
In April 1964, when the resistance war against the US to save the country was becoming increasingly fierce, she was selected by the organization to study at the B cadre school in Phu Tho and was mobilized to fight in the South and was assigned to work at the Saigon City Youth Union, participating in the special forces in the inner city with the alias Sau Xuan.
During her time in Saigon, to create a legal cover for herself, she had to work many jobs: tailor, hat maker, vegetable seller, lemon and chili... both to earn a living and to collect information to build a revolutionary base.
In preparation for the General Offensive and Uprising in the Spring of Mau Than 1968, she was transferred by the Regional Party Committee to District 2-4 with the title of District Party Committee member, Secretary of the Youth Executive Committee of District 2 (now District 1), Secretary of the Armed Propaganda Cell of District 2-4.
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Taking on a new assignment, close to the time of the Mau Than Spring 1968, she mobilized, built forces, organized the transportation and assembly of weapons, coordinated with armed teams of the district army and other special forces units to prepare for the uprising.
She also directly directed the mobilization of people to rise up in the first phase of the campaign, attacking the areas of Pham Ngu Lao, Ben Chuong Duong, Hiep Thanh alley, and Ben Van Don.
On the morning of May 5, 1968, she and her teammates directly commanded the 2-4 inter-district group located at house 225/4 Ben Chuong Duong and heroically sacrificed themselves. Before that, realizing the huge difference in forces, she ordered her teammates to retreat to preserve their forces while she stayed to fight.
Mourning the brave female soldier Le Thi Bach Cat, local people set up an altar for her at An Nhon Temple, District 1. After the liberation day and the country's reunification, Ho Chi Minh City named a street and an elementary school in District 11 after Le Thi Bach Cat.
In 1985, the State Council of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam posthumously awarded martyr Le Thi Bach Cat the First Class Resistance Medal. In Cua Lo town, Nghi Thu and Thu Thuy Inter-ward Secondary School was named after Le Thi Bach Cat.