The Declaration of Independence "Is the fruit of bloodshed and sacrifice"!

That is the conclusion written by author Tran Dan Tien in the work "Stories about President Ho's life and activities" (Literature Publishing House 1970, page 110) as a message to each generation of Vietnamese children to always appreciate the value of independence and freedom, to know how to sacrifice personal interests to protect and preserve the independence and freedom of the Fatherland in any circumstances.

And it is obvious that we will love independence and freedom more when we understand the sacrifices of our ancestors who have fallen through thousands of years of history, from repelling the Northern invaders to defeating the European and American imperialists and the Japanese fascists in the East, all in exchange for independence and freedom for the Vietnamese people today! A small nation, with a land not as vast and a population not as large as Vietnam, but has been brave and resilient to an extraordinary extent, becoming a rare thing in human history from ancient times to the present.

In fact, to have the Declaration of Independence announced to the world on September 2, 1945 in Ba Dinh (Hanoi), our entire nation had to fight steadfastly for 87 years, since the French-Spanish coalition opened fire to attack and occupy Son Tra peninsula (Da Nang) on ​​September 1, 1858. Right from when France occupied Da Nang, all classes from the people to scholars and mandarins rose up to fight fiercely to maintain the independence of the nation.

National festival at Ba Dinh Square. Photo: Sy Minh

First of all, we must mention Truong Dinh and Truong Quyen, then Nguyen Trung Truc, Vo Duy Duong, Nguyen Huu Huan, the two brothers Phan Ton and Phan Liem... then a number of patriotic officials such as the school inspector Pham Van Nghi who brought 300 volunteer soldiers from the North to the capital Hue to ask for permission to go kill the enemy, Governor Nguyen Tri Phuong and his son who heroically sacrificed themselves while defending Hanoi citadel in 1873, to Governor Hoang Dieu who steadfastly fought the French to defend Hanoi citadel in 1882. Many Confucian scholars also used their pens as weapons to fight the enemy such as Nguyen Dinh Chieu, Phan Van Tri...

Next were the movements to reclaim independence at the end of the 19th century, including the Can Vuong movement under the command of Ton That Thuyet, the Ba Dinh, Hung Linh, Huong Khe uprisings in the Central region; the Song Da, Bai Say uprisings in the North... which took place vigorously but eventually all ended in failure. At the beginning of the 20th century, patriotic and revolutionary movements following the democratic trend took place vigorously, typified by Phan Boi Chau and Phan Chau Trinh. It was Uncle Ho's turn, with his tireless activities and the total strength of the people following the path of Marxism-Leninism, to establish a political party of the proletariat, after 15 years of fighting, to finally achieve the great victory of the August Revolution in 1945, independence and freedom returned to the Fatherland of Vietnam after 61 years of falling into the hands of the enemy (1884-1945).

When the August Revolution was approaching its final victories, Uncle Ho wrote the first lines of the Declaration of Independence to urgently announce to his compatriots and the world the birth of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam - the first worker-peasant state in Southeast Asia. Uncle Ho wrote the Declaration in a very special historical context, at the urgent moment of the revolution, in just 3 days, in the dining room at 48 Hang Ngang, under a secret identity..., but it is considered a "great literary work of the ages" and has been included in the general education curriculum for several years now.

On July 27, 1945, the Central Standing Committee met, then the Provisional Government Council met, discussing many important matters, including the organization of the independence declaration ceremony on September 2, 1945. Uncle Ho was in charge of drafting the Declaration of Independence. From August 28, 1945, that is, July 21, At Dau (1) - when the people in Ha Tien and Dong Nai took power into the hands of the people, Uncle Ho began writing the Declaration. Uncle Ho wrote the Declaration of Independence on the 2nd floor of the house of Mr. Trinh Van Bo and Mrs. Hoang Thi Minh Ho at 48 Hang Ngang Street - a family of patriotic businessmen.

During 3 days, with the heart, intelligence and courage of a revolutionary leader who always kept in mind the independence of the nation, the happiness and prosperity of the people; having experienced revolutionary activities from East to West with the typewriter used in the Viet Bac base, Uncle Ho finished writing the Declaration of Independence on August 30 - the day when King Bao Dai read the abdication edict before a large crowd at Ngo Mon, Hue capital and handed over the seal and sword to the provisional revolutionary government. After writing, Uncle invited a number of comrades to discuss and contribute ideas to this draft Declaration of Independence, then the next day, August 31, Uncle Ho supplemented and edited a number of points and just waited for the day of proclamation.

At 2:00 p.m. on September 2, 1945, at the historic Ba Dinh Square, Ho Chi Minh solemnly read the Declaration of Independence, giving birth to the democratic republic before a large crowd of people at home and abroad:

"...All peoples in the world are born equal, every people has the right to live, the right to be happy and the right to be free...A people who have courageously fought against French slavery for more than 80 years,...standing with the Allies against fascism. That people must be free,...must be independent!...Vietnam has the right to enjoy freedom and independence, and in fact has become a free and independent country. The entire Vietnamese people are determined to devote all their spirit and strength, their lives and property to maintaining that freedom and independence" (2).

Those words containing the soul of the Vietnamese country are the heart of Uncle Ho's 35 years of revolutionary activities. That is why on August 30, 1945, after reading the manuscript to his close colleagues and asking for their opinions, Uncle Ho could not hide his joy and said: "In my life, I have written a lot, but only now have I been able to write such a Declaration". He was happy because this was "the result of the requests sent to the Versailles Conference that Uncle Ho wrote in 1919 and the Viet Minh program that he wrote in 1941. Moreover, the Declaration of Independence is the result of other declarations and the quintessence of predecessors such as Thu Khoa Huan, Phan Dinh Phung, Hoang Hoa Tham, Phan Boi Chau and many others, of many secret books, newspapers and leaflets written with the blood and tears of patriots more than 80 years ago". It is also "the flower and fruit of the blood shed and the lives sacrificed by the heroic sons of Vietnam in prisons, in concentration camps, on remote islands, on the guillotine, on the battlefield,... the result of the hopes, efforts and trust of more than 20 million Vietnamese people" (3).

That declaration has both national and international character, both historical and contemporary significance. It has a direct impact on the victory in the two resistance wars against France and the US and the current construction of socialism. Winning, maintaining and consolidating national independence is not only a wartime task but also an important task of our entire nation in the period of building and developing the country on the path of socialism. In the context of today's world, when integration for development has become inevitable, the issue of maintaining independence so as not to be dependent on big countries in many aspects, especially in economy and culture, always poses us significant challenges.
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Note:
(1), According to Vu Ky, Uncle Ho's Secretary tells stories, National Political Publishing House, Hanoi 2005, p.17.
(2), Ho Chi Minh Complete Works, vol. 3, National Political Publishing House, Hanoi, 2000, pp. 555-557.
(3) Tran Dan Tien, Stories about President Ho's life and activities, Literature Publishing House 1970, p.110.

Le Duc Hoang