Phan Hai said that day was February 19, 2014, lunar calendar, Ky Suu day, Dinh Mao month, Giap Ngo year. I checked and it was March 19, 2014. The solar calendar and the lunar calendar are exactly 1 month apart. According to the horoscope, that day was Thien Duong day, Kinh Trap season, good for traveling and praying for fortune.
Bringing the information he found, he told Phan Hai. He smiled and said:
– The Hoang Sa voyage that day also had another very good and important event, brother! My fellow crew members and fishermen and I went to the Hoang Sa fishing grounds for the first time. It was the first time Quynh Lap commune and also the first time Nghe An province had a ship going to Hoang Sa to catch seafood. Many people later even said that my ship was the first vehicle from the North from Ha Tinh to the Hoang Sa fishing grounds to exploit.
But there was one very special thing about that voyage that the experienced captain had not mentioned: His ship went to Hoang Sa at the time when China began to send the giant drilling rig HD 981 along with hundreds of support ships and boats, including military ships, missile frigates, coast guard, fishermen and aircraft into Vietnam's Hoang Sa waters.
Looking up at the red flag fluttering on the bow of the ship, the voice of the 48-year-old man from the sea became emotional:
– That day, two men from the Department of Exploitation and Protection of Aquatic Resources (now the Department of Fisheries – PV) of the Department of Agriculture came to the port to present flowers before the ship departed for Hoang Sa. I did not dare to look, nor did I dare to go ashore to receive them. I felt my heart wavering, afraid that once I got ashore I would not be able to walk anymore. I am a party member. I must be the pioneer in taking responsibility before the Fatherland and the fishermen. I bit my lips tightly and kept silent with my crew members, just like that, pressing the nautical chart to head straight to the South East Sea!
His full name is Phan Van Hai, but the people and fishermen in Tan Thanh village, Quynh Lap commune (Hoang Mai town) still call him Phan Hai. People in coastal areas still have the habit of combining their children's names with their father's names to "identify their identities", but in Phan Hai's case, it is completely different. This seems to be a "identification" of the people towards the person they love and respect. The name Phan Hai seems to have decided that his life was chosen by the sea, attached to and befriended by the waves of the East Sea, even though in the past he wanted to study to pursue a career in Law.
At the age of 15, Phan Hai followed his father and uncle to sea. At that time, his father - Mr. Phan Van Hung was the Chairman of the Sea Transport Cooperative of Quynh Lap Commune, Quynh Luu District (at that time Hoang Mai and Quynh Luu had not yet been separated), he was also a captain. After finishing secondary school, he followed his father and uncle to sea. His family received a pair of 105CV boats built under the province's offshore fishing project. His father and 3 uncles participated in the project. In the Gulf of Tonkin, the pair of project boats, from fishing with 2 poles and nets, then switched to trawling, purse seining, and trawling. During the years 1996 - 1997, Mr. Phan Van Hung forced his son to go ashore to study high school culture. Phan Hai's intention after graduation was to register for the Law exam to pursue his childhood dream. I don't know how "luckily", but during this time he also studied the Captain course. Phan Hai said, laughing: “I don’t understand why. I have always wanted to study Law, but when there was a Captain training course, I also registered to study it. It’s like the maritime profession has been ingrained in me since a long time ago!”
Phan Hai had been on shore for a few years when the two project ships that his father and uncles were operating suffered heavy losses. In 2000, Phan Hai got married. After the wedding night, his father simply said: “Become the captain of one of the two project ships. Go out to sea!” At that time, Phan Hai was 25 years old and officially became the captain.
The young captain began to establish his maritime career with voyages in the Gulf of Tonkin. At this time, he was no longer the young man who “rote” (did odd jobs on the ship) as before. The steadiness and steadiness of the captain did not only come from the ability to catch the wind direction, read the nautical chart, and determine the fishing grounds. It also came from the calmness and dignity in the character of a man born, raised, and matured before the waves. Only then did 15-17 experienced fishermen listen, believe, and follow. “That is exactly the quality of a leader” – this is what Mr. Truong Quang Thuan, a crew member on the ship captained by Mr. Phan Hai, told me. Mr. Thuan is 55 years old and as he said: “I have followed Phan Hai to sea for 18 years”.
The time Phan Hai became captain was also the time when the seine fishing profession was thriving. To change his job, he discussed with his father and boldly borrowed 330 million VND to buy 2 nets. It must be understood that in 2000, this was a huge amount of money. Determined to do, the efforts of the young captain brought results on the fishing grounds. Another opportunity came to him: In 2009, the State sold a pair of 105CV boats at a discount. With his boldness, Phan Hai borrowed more than 300 million to buy them back. And at this time, he was no longer a "hired worker". He truly became the owner of the pair of boats that he had been attached to for many years.
He thought that with his own pair of boats, he would be able to continue his fishing business. But Phan Hai did not think so. Our East Sea and the traditional profession of our ancestors cannot continue to continue forever. Only when we are out at sea can we fully appreciate the loss of Vietnamese fishermen. Thinking so, he decided to sell the pair of project boats to earn more money to buy new equipment.
In 2012, he invested 3 billion VND to build and launch a 720-horsepower ship - one of the fishing vessels with the largest capacity in Hoang Mai town at that time. And as the captain expected, the seine boat achieved high fishing efficiency, earning about 200 million VND in profit each month. However, based on practical experience, Phan Hai still couldn't help but worry: "Each sea trip takes at least one day to go and one day to return. Traveling like that is both time-consuming and fuel-consuming. If you encounter a large school of fish, you miss the timing, affecting the fishing efficiency."
From this concern, Phan Hai decided to build a fishing service ship and this means of transport is primarily to serve his fishing activities. In early 2014, the 770 CV service ship worth more than 2 billion VND was launched. Many people in Quynh Lap at that time still thought that Phan Hai was too reckless. However, after only a short time, people had to think differently when seeing the fishing efficiency of the pair of ships he owned. Not only that, only 1 year later, Phan Hai built a third ship with a length of 21m, a capacity of more than 800 CV and in the following years he bought 4 more ships, all of which were longer than 20m and had an engine capacity of 700 CV or more. Up to now, he has 6 fishing ships and 1 service ship. On the ships he owns, there are always more than 40 crew members, fishermen...
I have met and learned about many people who go to sea and offshore. But with Phan Hai, he gave me almost absolute trust in the fishing profession, in the responsibility that he took upon himself. It is not just about building more big ships and big engines to go offshore. Because after all, this is also an economic development activity of a family and individual nature. What is much greater that I found in him is love and responsibility. Phan Hai said: "I am a party member, I am a pioneer". He said that even when sleeping, he never stopped thinking about the sea, about the profession, about fishermen, about the Tan Thanh sandbar, about the named and unnamed jobs that the Party members of the Fisheries Association Party Cell entrusted to the Secretary.
Phan Hai remembers clearly the day he was admitted to the Party. It was March 19, 2003, the same day he went to Hoang Sa 11 years later. At that time, he was the Secretary of the Youth Union of Hop Tien village (later the village merged and changed its name to Tan Thanh). The leader of Tan Thanh's Youth Union was both the leader at sea and a pioneer in the commune's Youth Union activities. For the elderly and young people in Quynh Lap, Phan Hai was truly an inspiration, transmitting positive energy. He never shied away from anything that the fishermen and young people expected. He still said the same thing: "I am a Party member!". That means he was the pioneer in shouldering all responsibilities.
In 2009, when the commune established the Fisheries Association, he was "recommended" by local fishermen to hold the position of Chairman. The Association had no salary or benefits. Phan Hai accepted and worked very effectively. 160 members under the direction and guidance of the Association's Executive Committee headed by Phan Hai have become the most effective professional organization in the coastal area of Nghe An. The annual catch of the Quynh Lap Fisheries Association is always maintained at 32,000 - 35,000 tons of seafood. The mindset of the leader Phan Hai is also very special. He borrowed the idea of the Government when he said: "If I can catch fish, I will also help others to catch fish. The motto is to not leave any fishermen behind".
This mindset is demonstrated by actions and deeds, not words on the waves. Before March 19, 2014, the time Phan Hai first went to Hoang Sa, he had many sleepless nights. The fishing grounds in the Gulf of Tonkin were increasingly limited, aquatic resources were decreasing, and there were many fishing boats. Meanwhile, the South China Sea, where Vietnam's Hoang Sa and Truong Sa are located, still had a lot of potential, with few fishing boats. But this was also a complicated area. At that time, the State had a program to support fishermen in exploiting seafood in the Hoang Sa archipelago. Especially at the time when China brought the HD 981 drilling rig into Vietnam's Hoang Sa waters. "We, the seafarers, know that wherever there are Vietnamese fishermen, there is a fence of our homeland" - Phan Hai said while his eyes were still fixed on the waves - "We are party members. We must be the pioneers to pave the way, brother!".
But the Hoang Sa archipelago has surpassed everything he had previously learned and imagined. “The waves are terrifyingly large, the ocean currents are turbulent, the ocean is vast without a single fishing boat. Occasionally a fighter plane flies over the deck. The feeling of anxiety remains the same” – the captain’s voice became urgent. Phan Hai also honestly said that the first fishing trips were ineffective because his boat and fishing gear were only used to fish in the Gulf of Tonkin. In the Hoang Sa fishing grounds, the fish finder cannot detect the bottom, only on the GPS, the sea is thousands of meters deep. At that time, each trip he only earned a few tens of millions of dong. However, the most important thing at that time was not the output. His boat needed to be present there regularly. The fishing coordinates ranged from: 14 to 16 degrees North latitude – 105 to 111 degrees East longitude in the Hoang Sa sea. And in the first time coming to Hoang Sa fishing grounds, Phan Hai's boat fished there until June 2014, the following nets were more effective, with higher yields.
Returning to Quynh Lap after his memorable voyage, he called on and mobilized the commune's fishing fleet to go to Hoang Sa fishing grounds. "Hoang Sa is our sea. There are huge aquatic resources there. People who want to get better and rich should go to Hoang Sa. Mr. Hai told us that" - in a meeting more than a year ago, Mr. Nguyen Van Muoi, one of the boat owners and experienced fishermen in Quynh Lap, told me this. And Secretary of the Quynh Lap Commune Party Committee Ho Canh Thuan affirmed: "Mr. Hai is truly an inspiration and a source of positive energy for Quynh Lap fishermen. He has a great influence on the people. In 2022, the total value of the whole commune reached 1,200 billion VND, of which the Fisheries Association contributed 70%".
With the positive energy and prestige that the leader of the Fisheries Association transmitted, fishing boat owners in Quynh Lap followed Phan Hai to the Hoang Sa fishing grounds. If in 2015 Phan Hai led 6 boats to Hoang Sa, then in 2016 there were 16; in 2017 there were more than 40; in 2018 there were 80. And up to now, the whole Quynh Lap commune has 135 boats 20m or longer, with engine capacity from 700-800 CV, all of which are heading to the Hoang Sa fishing grounds, of which 90 boats regularly participate in long-term fishing here. “Our Quynh Lap boats do not go to Hoang Sa just to “click points” to enjoy policies. We go there to fish. Only by fishing will we be effective” – Phan Hai shared.
In his story, Phan Hai always reminds himself: "I am a party member. People look at my actions and deeds to put their trust in me." Also because he always creates trust in his work, in his way of life and dedication, on July 21, 2021, the Quynh Lap Commune Party Committee issued Decision No. 45 on the pilot establishment of the Fisheries Association Party Cell. Mr. Phan Van Hai was appointed by the Party Committee as Party Cell Secretary. For the first time in Nghe An, a Party cell was formed and operated in the lives of fishermen. The cell has 15 party members, by the beginning of 2023, the cell admitted 2 new party members, bringing the number of party members to 17, including 7 ship owners, 6 ship captains and 4 crew members, most of whom are people participating in offshore fishing. Mr. Ho Sy Hung - Captain of ship NA98687 is 1 of 2 party members admitted this year. He said that party members must be more exemplary than others, only then will people trust them. “The Party Cell and the Party Cell Secretary have thoroughly instructed that when we go fishing, we must not hide the fishing grounds, if we find a lot of fish, we must call people to join us in fishing, not leaving anyone behind. As party members, we must be more exemplary in protecting sovereignty at sea. If we discover foreign aircraft or strange ships violating our airspace and sea, we must use our phones to record them and report them to our authorities,” said Mr. Ho Sy Hung.
Immediately after the Quynh Lap Commune Fisheries Association Party Cell was reorganized, the first thing the Party Committee agreed on was to set out five key tasks, including: rescue at sea; sharing fishing grounds; information, protecting Vietnam's sea when foreign ships invade; party building, developing party members; protecting the marine environment. The tasks set out by the Party Cell are very close to the fishing practices of party members who are fishermen. For example, when receiving information about a ship in distress, regardless of whether it is anchored or in production, the ships must collect fishing gear and respond promptly. Or as for the task of environmental protection, when participating in fishing, if plastic waste is discovered at sea, it must be collected and brought back to shore. Phan Hai's ship alone collects tons of plastic waste every month, and when it is brought back to shore, it can be sold for several million VND/month. Secretary Phan Hai said that in early 2024, the Party Cell will coordinate with Border Guard Station 144 (located in Quynh Phuong Commune) and the People's Committee of Quynh Lap Commune to launch a movement to protect the marine environment in the entire commune. Mr. Hai hopes that by doing this, the marine and onshore environments will be better protected.
Talking about the formation and operation of the Quynh Lap Commune Fisheries Association Party Cell, comrade Le Quoc Khanh - Deputy Head of the Standing Committee of the Provincial Party Committee's Organization Board said that the establishment of the Quynh Lap Fisheries Association Party Cell was to meet the practical requirements set forth in the special area. The Party members are fishermen, they work together, often fishing at sea for long periods of time, so the model was necessary. "Through monitoring, I see that the Party members of the Fisheries Association Party Cell are very pioneering and exemplary, such as in rescue at sea, Party members are the ones who rush forward and accept sacrifice. In particular, the Party Cell has a very dedicated and exemplary Secretary. That is why the Provincial Party Committee's Organization Board has supported the pilot project to establish the Quynh Lap Fisheries Association Party Cell since the time of the project to establish the Quynh Lap Fisheries Association Party Cell".
When attending the conference to review the 2-year pilot establishment of the Quynh Lap Fisheries Association Party Cell in August 2023, comrade Hoang Nghia Hieu - Deputy Secretary of Nghe An Provincial Party Committee affirmed: “The establishment of the Fisheries Association Party Cell not only overcomes difficulties in living conditions of party members, contributes to strengthening the party organization, improving the quality of party members, but also strongly promotes the core role in leading and directing offshore exploitation and fishing activities and protecting the sacred sovereignty of the sea and islands of the Fatherland. The Party Cell has helped fishermen promptly access and well implement the Party's policies, the State's policies and laws; raise awareness and responsibility in protecting the marine environment, participating in search and rescue at sea... The party members in the Party Cell are the political core, setting an example, putting the responsibility of helping the people before economic interests".
Secretary of the Quynh Lap Fisheries Association Party Cell Phan Van Hai said that according to the Party Cell's regulations, Party members meet on the 3rd or 15th day of the lunar month, when the moon is bright and the fishing boats return to shore. In cases where Party members are still fishing and cannot return to the southern port, they can meet online via private chat or closed groups. "Everyone must participate, everyone can contribute their opinions and must ensure confidentiality," said Mr. Hai.
In early September this year, Phan Hai was again trusted by everyone to be nominated to the Executive Committee of the Quynh Lap Business Association. The establishment of this organization, according to Quynh Lap Party Secretary Ho Canh Thuan, is on the one hand aimed at gathering businesses, seafood processing facilities, ship owners, and captains to improve production and fishing efficiency, and on the other hand aimed at improving social security work.
When asked a little about his family, Phan Hai's eyes were filled with joy: "My wife is Vu Thi Thuy, a teacher at Quynh Lap A Primary School. We have 3 children. The eldest daughter is a teacher at Hoang Mai High School; the second son is a freshman at Hanoi Medical University this year; the youngest son is in 5th grade this year. That's it!".
The two words “so it is” sounded so light from a man who has been at sea for more than 30 years, seem to contain love, faith, and a strong responsibility for life. That’s right, because Phan Hai is a fisherman, a ship captain, and a very exemplary party member.
September 2023
