Former General Secretary Do Muoi's special affection for his hometown Nghe An

This probably comes from many aspects, first of all, this is a land of outstanding people, rich in revolutionary tradition and heavily devastated by war; Nghe An is also the homeland of President Ho Chi Minh - the old father, the beloved leader of the whole nation. And the special affection of former General Secretary Do Muoi for Nghe An also comes from a bit of family privacy - his first wife was Mrs. Ta Thi Thanh (deceased) from Dien Kim commune, Dien Chau district.

The person who laid the first brick to rebuild Vinh city

When it comes to the mark of former General Secretary Do Muoi on his hometown Nghe An, there will be many things for former provincial leaders to recall and recount; there will be many valuable lessons to share. However, nothing can replace the image of Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Construction Do Muoi, who laid the first brick at the groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of Quang Trung apartment complex in Vinh city on International Labor Day, May 1, 1974. (The photo was taken by Journalist Nguyen Hung Son, then a photo reporter for Nghe An Newspaper). The photo capturing this special moment has become an iconic image not only for Vinh city and Nghe An province, but also represents the resilience and overcoming of difficulties and challenges of a country in the midst of war to stand up and rebuild its homeland.

Former General Secretary Do Muoi, who laid the first brick to build Quang Trung apartment complex (Vinh City) on May 1, 1974. Photo TL

Let me remind you a little about history to see the great significance of the urban reconstruction of Vinh and Nghe An province in the final years of the resistance war against American imperialism:

On August 5, 1964, after consecutive heavy defeats in the Southern battlefield, the US imperialists, after creating the "Gulf of Tonkin incident", escalated their bombing and devastated Northern Vietnam. Nghe An and Vinh city were the main targets of the imperialist air force's bombardment. Within 8 years, from 1964 to 1972, millions of tons of bombs and ammunition were dropped on the North. In Vinh city, there was not a single intact house, all hospitals, schools, and architectural works were completely destroyed, and the economy was devastated by bombs.

Vinh City was devastated after 8 years of American imperialism escalating its attacks on the North. Photo TL

On January 27, 1973, the Paris Agreement was signed, forcing the US imperialists to accept stopping all escalation actions in the North. And at this time, cities like Vinh had the conditions and opportunities to start rebuilding the city. With the attention of the Central Government, Vinh was chosen to carry out reconstruction with the wholehearted and righteous help of the government of the German Democratic Republic. Before that, on October 22, 1973, the Government of Vietnam and the German Democratic Republic signed the Agreement on the Reconstruction of Vinh City.

After the agreement was signed, at the end of 1973, the first East German architectural and construction experts came to Vinh city to conduct construction surveys and restore the city after the war. Among the first Germans to set foot in Vinh that day was Professor Gerhard Kosen - Deputy Minister of Construction, State Secretary. This shows that the government of the German Democratic Republic gave Vietnam, Nghe An province and Vinh city special attention and assistance.

The first group of experts from the German Democratic Republic arrived in Vinh to help rebuild the city after the war. Photo TL

After conducting surveys, measurements, and designing, the German and Nghe An experts decided to build an apartment complex along Quang Trung Street in the city center, which is also the section of National Highway 1A running through Vinh. According to the initial design and plan, Quang Trung apartment complex will be built on both the East and West sides of Quang Trung Street. The entire planning area is located on an area of ​​about 30 hectares, divided into 5 groups of houses from A to E. The East side consists of 3 groups, of which group A has 6 houses, group B has 5 houses, group C has 9 houses. In addition, this area is also planned to build a commercial center, 1 primary school, 2 kindergartens, 2 nurseries. The West side consists of 2 groups: D and E, of which group D has 9 houses, group E has 6 houses. However, for many reasons, the two apartment complexes D and E could not be implemented, the first reason being that Nghe An province and Vinh city did not have the economic conditions and essential material means to implement.

After the groundbreaking ceremony on May 1, 1974, the construction works in the Quang Trung apartment building project were quickly deployed. Photo TL

Quang Trung Residence was once a symbol and an indispensable part of Vinh City's history. Photo: Nguyen Book.

Returning to the atmosphere of International Labor Day more than 44 years ago, in an article titled: "Memories of the first days of rebuilding Vinh city" by Mr. Ngo Van Yem - former Head of Vinh Urban Management Department wrote:“On May 1, 1974, in Vinh city, the land destroyed in the destructive war of the American empire, a great festival immediately lit up. People from all directions of the city poured into Quang Trung area. At the 12/9 cinema, the Nghe An Administrative Committee solemnly held a groundbreaking ceremony to rebuild the city.”.

Mr. Ngo Van Yem - former Head of Vinh Urban Management Department talks about the construction of Quang Trung apartment building on May 1, 1974. Photo: Duc Anh

Mr. Ngo Van Yem said that at that time he was an architect working at the Ministry of Construction and was transferred to Vinh to participate in the construction of the Quang Trung apartment complex as an interpreter for the German Democratic Republic expert team. The reason for this assignment was because Mr. Yem firstly had expertise in construction and more importantly, he had studied and worked in the German Democratic Republic.

“That day, thousands of people flocked to the construction site to witness the groundbreaking ceremony. It was very important and proud. The province organized a rally to celebrate International Labor Day right in the 12/9 Cinema. The entire cinema hall, which had only a few hundred seats, was packed. The rally became special because of the participation of Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Construction Do Muoi and Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the German Democratic Republic to Vietnam, Mr. Dieter Doring. In addition, there was also Secretary of the Nghe An Provincial Party Committee Nguyen Sy Que, along with provincial leaders and a delegation of German experts,” Mr. Ngo Van Yem recalled.

Thanh Vinh today. Photo: Nguyen Book

According to Mr. Yem, right after the rally, the delegates went to the construction site, at block A1 - Quang Trung apartment building to hold the groundbreaking ceremony. And by laying the first brick to rebuild Vinh city, Deputy Prime Minister Do Muoi seemed to have expressed the aspiration of the Party Committee, government and people of Nghe An province to rise up after years of hardship.

Special affection for Nghe An

It can be said that the care and affection of former General Secretary Do Muoi for Nghe An is a rare and sincere affection. Mr. Nguyen Ba - former Secretary of Nghe An Provincial Party Committee said that when he was still in office or when he retired, General Secretary Do Muoi never stopped worrying about the homeland of President Ho Chi Minh. He was especially interested in Western Nghe An. Every time he visited Nghe An or had provincial officials go to Hanoi, the General Secretary always asked about Western Nghe An. The question that General Secretary Do Muoi always asked was: Are the people in the West hungry and suffering, how is their business, is the economy developing?

Western Nghe An. Photo: Nguyen Book

“Once he joked with the Provincial Party Committee that Nghe An should be divided into two, with Mr. Tuy (Pham Xuan Tuy, former Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee - PV) in charge of the West, and Mr. Ba (Nguyen Ba, former Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee - PV) in charge of the plains. This mountainous area has rich potential but the people are too miserable. The purpose is to promote economic development in Western Nghe An. That is what the General Secretary meant,” Mr. Nguyen Ba recounted.

Former Provincial Party Secretary Nguyen Ba also said that, implementing the direction of General Secretary Do Muoi, the Provincial Party Committee and Provincial People's Committee have focused on investment, construction and many solutions to develop the Western Nghe An region through many policies and strategies. Many economic, cultural, social and transport infrastructure policies have been prioritized for the mountainous people. Thanks to that, the appearance and social life of this area have been significantly improved. And through that, it also shows the vision of the head of state for the locality with the longest border adjacent to the Lao PDR.

Passion fruit growing model of Mong people in Pha Nhom village, Tam Hop commune (Tuong Duong). Photo: TL Dao Tuan

"Later, when he visited the province, General Secretary Do Muoi asked to visit the Western Nghe An region. He praised the leaders of Nghe An province for properly implementing the Central's instructions, narrowing the gap between the mountainous region and the plains. At that time, the General Secretary said that in terms of infrastructure, life, and housing conditions of the people in the Western Nghe An districts were much better than those in the northern mountainous provinces" - Mr. Nguyen Ba excitedly recounted, adding that in 2017, when he visited former General Secretary Do Muoi on the occasion of his 100th birthday, the first question he asked was: What is the current situation of the people in the mountainous region of Nghe An?

The son-in-law of the coastal countryside

The first wife of former General Secretary Do Muoi was Mrs. Ta Thi Thanh, from Dien Kim commune, Dien Chau. According to former Provincial Party Secretary Nguyen Ba, every time he visited and worked in Nghe An, General Secretary Do Muoi always visited and cared about his "maternal relatives". Once, comrade Do Muoi had a wish and asked the province to arrange a visit to Dien Kim commune, his wife's hometown. When he arrived, he visited the ancestral shrine, burned incense for his ancestors, and met and asked about each person.

The former General Secretary also told the people that, due to his busy work schedule, he did not have much time to visit Dien Kim commune, but deep down he always worried about this coastal land. “At that time, Dien Kim commune was still very poor. Realizing that the local people still lacked a bridge to facilitate travel, comrade Do Muoi directed the central departments and branches to allocate funds to build a bridge. The bridge was named Dien Kim, but many local people still called it Ong Muoi bridge,” Mr. Nguyen Ba recalled.

Former General Secretary Do Muoi was also the son-in-law of the coastal village of Dien Chau. Illustration: Nguyen Book.

Former Provincial Party Secretary Nguyen Ba said that the special affection that General Secretary Do Muoi had for his hometown Nghe An was also shown in the fact that, while still holding the position of Chairman of the Council of Ministers (now Prime Minister), General Secretary Do Muoi volunteered to be included in the list of candidates for the National Assembly in Nghe Tinh province (before the province was cut off) and he became a National Assembly Delegate for the 8th term (1988) representing the aspirations and interests of Nghe Tinh voters.

All of the above shows that General Secretary Do Muoi seemed to consider himself a part of the loyal land of Nghe An.