The Declaration of Independence addressed by President Ho Chi Minh at Ba Dinh Square on September 2, 1945 marked the birth of our nation and truly presented our people’s desire for national independence and socialism. Despite of that spirit, there are vicious notions that distort and deny the values of this address, they must be completely refuted and defeated.

These notions argued that the Declaration of Independence by President Ho Chi Minh “imitated” and “duplicated” ideas from United States Declaration of Independence 1776 and French Revolution’s Declaration of the Right of the Men and of the Citizen 1791. They also added that our Declaration has no humanity value and Ho Chi Minh and his fellow communists were “warmongers”. It is obvious that these are falsified and reactionary notions, which were proposed by those who still pursue backward political ambitions, hide themselves in the shadow of hatred and oppose to the interest and tradition of our people and our nation.

1. Cultural and humanity values of the great man of culture Ho Chi Minh in the Declaration of Independence

At the beginning of the Address, President Ho Chi Minh cited United States Declaration of Independence: “all men are by nature equally free and independent, and have certain inherent rights of which . . . they cannot deprive or divest their posterity; namely, the enjoyment of life and liberty, with the means of acquiring and possessing property, and pursuing and obtaining happiness and safety”. Also, he reasserted French Revolution’s Declaration of the Right of the Men and of the Citizen 1791: “Men are born and remain free and equal in rights”. On the other hand, in his Declaration, President Ho Chi Minh expanded the rights of man to the right to freedom and independence of the whole nation. Therefore, it is clearly not an “imitation” or “duplicate”!

United States Declaration of Independence demonstrated the desire of North American colonies for freedom from the oppression of British monarchy. Their revolution was a critical milestone in the history of national liberation on the planet. With regard to French Declaration of the Right of the Men and of the Citizen, it clearly determined the right to freedom and democracy of citizens in accordance to the law and greatly influenced national liberation struggles against feudalism. Both documents clearly bore progressive ideas and made significant contributions to the development of mankind’s political and humanity theories. Unfortunately, after seizing ruling powers, the bourgeois classes in the United States and France acted against these humanity values when waging wars to invade Vietnam and many other nations.

The act of citing American and French declarations truly showed that Ho Chi Minh was a great man of culture. In fact, after the August Revolution 1945, French Colonialists were the main enemy in our revolutionary cause, and the U.S. and Kuomintang also sought to overthrow our government and replace the French in Indochina. Under that situation, Vietnamese people, under the leadership of our Party and President Ho Chi Minh, fought bravely to defeat French Colonialists and later U.S Imperialists. However, we held no grudge against French and American people, as well as their cultures. On the contrary, we valued and learnt a lot from their political and cultural quintessence created by the people of the two nations during their struggles for the good of their countries. On the other hand, by citing the American Declaration, President Ho Chi Minh sought to announce to the world that the right to fight for national independence of Vietnamese people was sacred and undeniable. And with the citation of the French Declaration, the President wanted to show the world that it was the French that once raised the banner of progress and democracy in their fight against feudalism.

Freedom and equality has always been the desire of mankind since class division and oppression started to occur in societies. And fighting for freedom and equality is a noble act in the modern world. In the Declaration of Independence of Democratic Republic of Vietnam, President Ho Chi Minh expanded this right for not only “every people” but also “all nations in the world”. In his mind, freedom and independence are the prerequisites for happiness and progress of not only Vietnamese people but also all other nations in the world. National independence is precious, but it must also protect the interests of the people, ensure the well-being of all citizens. Only when national independence is achieved, then human rights are fully and extensively protected. Those whose exploit human right issues to sabotage national independence and hinder national interest are our enemy and they need to be dealt with to preserve the values of our Declaration of Independence.

2. Humanity and the just cause of Vietnamese nation in our Declaration of Independence

Adversary forces who seek to sabotage our Party, our State and our regime argue that: Ho Chi Minh and his fellow communists were “warmongers”, and September 2, 1945 was the day that marked a “bloody page” in the history of Vietnam, and they called it “national reprisal day”. Needless to say, this is an outrageous slander aiming at President Ho Chi Minh and his Declaration of Independence.

Our Declaration of Independence was a political document in nature. It summarized common values of mankind in the fight for equality and national independence of Vietnam and other nations. To achieve equality for the people, we had to sacrifice in blood during our struggle against invaders and oppressors. As a nation which always held humanity values in high regard, we respected progressive achievements made by American and French people in their fight for equality, liberty and fraternity. However, French colonialists, on behalf of French bourgeois class, falsely used these ideas to invaded our country and enslave our people. That said, Ho Chi Minh, in his Declaration of Independence, exposed their aggression before the whole world and proved that their act of oppression was unjust and completely opposed to the values of their own revolution.

Also, Vietnam Declaration of Independence showed the humane tradition and the just cause of our nation. Although French colonists were our enemy, our people were still willing to save the lives and protect the properties of French citizens during wartime. In a letter sent to our Southern people on September 26, 1945, President Ho Chi Minh wrote: “We must carefully monitor captured French nationals, but we also must treat them properly. We must let the whole world, especially French people, know that: we are the nation of dignity. We only seek for our independence and freedom, not revenge; we must prove that we are civilized people, much more civilized than those murderous invaders.”

The desire to fight for justice and equality is a core value of Vietnamese tradition. This value has been constantly developed and demonstrated throughout our history of building and defending our country. Our sense of humanity and justice gives us the internal strength to fight and to win in our wars of resistance against foreign invaders. The Declaration of Independence September 2, 1945 promoted our civilized tradition to the whole world and warned French colonist about our cultural power and the righteousness of Vietnamese people. In fact, thanks to this power, we were able to wipe out every aggressor to firmly protect the independence, freedom and equality of the nation of Vietnam.

3. The desire for peace and the courageous spirit of Vietnam in the Declaration of Independence

Vietnamese people always have the desire for peace and wish to live in an independent and free nation. Under the leadership of President Ho Chi Minh and the Party, our people were willing to sacrifice everything to fulfill this dream. After the coupe on March 9, 1945, French colonists surrendered Vietnam to Japanese Imperialists; however, when World War II ended, the French, using the mission of disarming Japanese units as an excuse, plotted to take control of our country once again. With his outstanding political savvy, President Ho Chi Minh soon realized this ambition. In the Declaration of Independence, he announced the removal of all French special privileges in Vietnam; and asserted the determination of Vietnamese people in defeating French colonialists. This was also a warning to every foreign invader, showing them the courage and the will to fight for national independence of our people. In fact, as a nation which bravely fought for the interest of its people and the progress and dignity of the whole world, we deserve to enjoy our own independence and freedom. With the Declaration of Independence 1945, we announced to the whole world that: Vietnam had truly become an independent nation.

After over 70 years, the spirit and values of our Declaration of Independence still persist. The Address is truly a cultural legacy and also the source of our internal strength to build and defend our country. Upholding these values and spirit, our Party, our State, our Military and our people always determine to preserve our national independence and socialist goals; constantly protect our national sovereignty and territorial integrity; and restlessly defending Marxism – Leninism, Ho Chi Minh’s thought, our Party’s principles and our socialist regime. Any conspiracy that seeks to deny the values of our Declaration of Independence will surely be defeated.

Senior Colonel, Associated Professor, Dr Le Quy Trinh,

Major Nguyen Dinh Tuong, Military Political Academy – Ministry of National Defence