Grasping the Party and State’s strategy for building the militia and self-defence force and clearly understanding this force’s important role, over the past years, the district of Dan Phuong, Hanoi capital city has always paid due regard to taking measures for building a “strong, extensive” militia and self-defence force in accordance with the area’s particularities. Up to now, the district has established 30 militia and self-defence units whose number of staff members amount to 1.48% of its population, including 14 self-defence units. The district’s militia and self-defence force has been made politically strong and promoted its vanguard, core role in performing the military-defence task and taking part in maintaining political security and social safety, preventing and mitigating natural disaster consequences, and building new countryside. The force’s achievements have contributed to building and consolidating the all-people national defence and the posture of all-people national defence associated with the people’s security posture.

To gain those achievements, first of all, the district has strengthened the all-level party committees and authorities’ leadership and direction and promoted the military office’s core role in building the militia and self-defence force as a matter of top priority. The District Military Command (DMC) has advised the District’s Party Committee and People’s Committee on directing all-level party committees and authorities as well as offices and units to grasp the Party’s guidelines on building the armed forces, the State’s law, and higher echelons’ resolutions and directives on the militia and self-defence force. Focuses have been placed on introducing the 11^th Party Central Secretariat’s Directive 16-CT/TW on “enhancing the Party’s leadership over the militia and self-defence force and the reserve force in the new situation” and its Conclusion 41-KL/TW, dated March 31^st 2009, on continuing to execute the Directive 16. At the same time, the DMC has cooperated with sectors and offices in advising the district on developing and issuing various resolutions and plans enhancing the effectiveness of party committees’ leadership and authorities’ management and operation towards the performance of this important task. Grounded on the DMC’s advice, the district has built and executed the “plan to develop the militia and self-defence force in the states of combat readiness between 2016 and 2020.” To that end, the district has combined the implementation of the Law on the Militia and Self-Defence Force with the performance of the local military-defence work and the building of defensive zone; encouraged the involvement of the whole political system and people, particularly the DMC’s core role in the process. Moreover, the district has enhanced the work of inspection and supervision to opportunely detect and rectify weaknesses in the building and operation of the militia and self-defence force.

The training of a 14.5 mm air defence machine gun platoon

As the district is located in the suburb of the capital city, its citizens at the age of militia and self-defence service are regularly absent from their homes. Thus, the district has directed its communes to seriously conduct the work of registering and managing the citizens at the age of mandatory service and select and initiate them into the militia and self-defence force in a public, democratic, close way. On a yearly basis, grounded on the resolutions and directives on the military-defence work by the Party Committee, People’s Committee, and High Command of Hanoi Capital City, the DMC assigns its cadres to cooperate with sectors and offices in reviewing the militia and self-defence force and advising all-level party committees and authorities on consolidating this force both qualitatively and quantitatively. In this regard, importance has been attached to building the core militia and self-defence force, mobile militia force, specialized militia force, and self-defence force of offices properly. Under the plan to develop the militia and self-defence force in the states of combat readiness and national defence between 2016 and 2020, the DMC has actively made commune-level military commands capable of giving advice on the militia and self-defence work to party committees and authorities, improved the professional competence of cadres in charge of this work, applied the software to the work of registration, statistics, and management, and strictly maintained the order for first-time registration, supplementary registration, and registration of leave or long-term absence, or arrival so as to closely manage the human resources for the militia and self-defence force in the area.

Military cadres at the grass-roots level act as the determinant to the quality and effectiveness of building and training the militia and self-defence force. Fully aware of that, the district has paid special regard to consolidating the commune-level military commands and a contingent of militia and self-defence cadres both qualitatively and quantitatively. Under the Decision 3992/2012/QĐ-UBND by the Municipal People’s Committee on training cadres of the commune-level military commands, the DMC has proactively directed communes to dispatching their military cadres for further education according to the higher echelons’ targets. Up to now, the district has used its own budgets to send 46 cadres to study at military colleges, which helps provide sufficient cadres for the commune-level military commands and offices’ military commands. Those cadres have promoted their role in counselling, directing, and performing the military-defence task and the building of the militia and self-defence force.

In addition to consolidating the militia and self-defence force’s organizational structure, the district has focused on raising the quality of training and exercise and making this force capable of performing its task. Grasping and executing the Resolution 939-NQ/ĐU, dated March 14^th 2013, by the Party Committee of Hanoi Capital High Command on improving the quality of training in the period of 2013-2020 and beyond, the DMC has attached significance to renewing the training of the militia and self-defence force in a comprehensive, focalized manner, under the motto of “basics, practicality, and quality,” in accordance with the organizational structure, equipment, and task of each force. Prior to each training season, the DMC assigns its cadres to direct and help communes to develop the training plans, timetables, and lessons, consolidate and prepare the training aids, materials, and grounds. Moreover, it has organized training courses for cadres of the commune-level military commands and self-defence units, cadres of militia and self-defence platoons and squads, and military cadres of villages. Regarding the training of the militia and self-defence force, the district has provided full-time training courses for the first-year members of the militia and self-defence force in each cluster of communes, the mobile militia force and specialized militia and self-defence force have been trained full time by the district’s military office, other components of the militia and self-defence force have been trained by communes and self-defence units. Besides, the district has renewed the training work and closely combined military training with political and legal education and mass mobilization. Great value has been attached to training cadres and soldiers of the militia and self-defence force to master the infantry combat skills and on-spot combat projects and making them capable of cooperating with other forces in conducting patrols, dealing with the A2 situation, and maintaining political security and social safety in the area. As the district is located between the Red River and the Day River, it faces a high risk of flood. Thus, in addition to defensive combat training, the district has attached importance to training the militia and self-defence force in natural disaster prevention and control and search and rescue. In 2019, the district has included armed swimming in the training program and military-defence contests for the militia and self-defence force. Typical examples of the training work for the militia and self-defence force include the communes of Dan Phuong, Dong Thap, and Hong Ha as well as the Day River Flood Manipulation Work and the Tax Division.

Moreover, the district has directed all-level military offices to build and complete the system of combat documents for the militia and self-defence force and organize the district-level defensive zone exercises, commune-level defensive exercises, and natural disaster prevention and control and search and rescue drills. Since 2013, the district has conducted 2 district-level defensive zone exercises, 6 natural disaster prevention and control and search and rescue exercises, and 26 commune-level defensive exercises. The district has closely directed the operation of the militia and self-defence force under law and regularly maintained the order and regulations for combat readiness. At the same time, it has directed the force to well execute the working plans and regulations on cooperating with other forces under the Government’s Decree 133/2015/NĐ-CP in conducting patrols to maintain security, helping the people with hunger eradication and poverty reduction, building new-style countryside, and carrying out local movements, thereby contributing to making Dan Phuong the first district of Hanoi City that fulfils the criteria for new-style countryside.

In order to promote the militia and self-defence force’s role, the district has ensured sufficient policies for this force. In spite of the limited budget, the DMC has advised the district on providing sufficient policies and entitlements for the militia and self-defence force under the Law on the Militia and Self-Defence Force. Moreover, the district has actively mobilized resources to acquire uniform, vehicles, and means for the militia and self-defence force and opportunely encourage cadres and soldiers of the force to keep their mind on their work, readily undertake and accomplish all assigned tasks.

The obtained results and experiences provide an important basis for the district of Dan Phuong to continue making the militia and self-defence force capable of fulfilling the military-defence task to contribute to building a wealthy, civilized, and modern district and Capital City.

Col. Nguyen Ngoc Son

Standing Member of the District’s Party Committee

Commander of the DMC