Being founded in the fight for defending the North’s border (May 4th 1979), promoting the tradition of Uncle Ho’s soldiers, the Division 355 (under the Military Region 2) has overcome a lot of difficulties and hardships, successfully fulfilled all assigned tasks, built up its tradition of “proactiveness, solidarity, loyalty, and victory”.
Amidst the new requirements of Homeland construction and protection, since June 1992, the Division has taken charge of managing and training reserve force of three provinces, namely Tuyen Quang, Yen Bai and Phu Tho. To fulfil this mission, the Division’s Party Committee and Command have taken various measures synchronously and gained the encouraging results. The annual inspections of the Division’s training of the reserve force by the Ministry of National Defence and the Military Region 2 reveal that it has successfully fulfilled its mission; its live-fire exercises have always been good and safe; its synergy and combat readiness capacity have been enhanced and met the requirements in all situations. With those achievements, the Division was presented the Third-Class Fatherland Protection Order by the State and the Flag of Top Unit in the Determination to Win Emulation Movement by the Ministry of National Defence.
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| The Division’s troops helping the people handle the natural disaster consequences |
The Division has drawn some lessons on the work of training the reserve force as follows.
First, enhancing the all-level party committees and commands’ leadership and direction over the training of the reserve force. This is a matter of principle and a central task in all operations of the Division. Thus, grounded on the higher echelons’ resolutions and directives on the training work, particularly the Central Military Commission’s Resolution 765-NQ/QUTW on “improving the training quality in the 2013-2020 period and beyond”, yearly, the Division’s Party Committee issues a specialized resolution on the training of the reserve force as the basis for the implementation process within the entire Division. Based on this resolution, the all-level party committees and commands develop their programs/plans relevant to their situation and function, while assigning each specific piece of work to each party committee member. In the process, the all-level party committees and commands always stick with their troops and promote the vanguard, exemplary role of cadres and party members, particularly the key ones in each step and operation of the training work. The Division’s Party Committee and Command direct units to maintain the order for the party and political work and grasp cadres and troops’ ideology and aspirations as well as their difficulties so as to adopt the remedial measures and encourage them to handle hardships for the sake of the improved quality of training. At the same time, units are asked to step up the Determined to Win emulation movement, well conduct the work of commendation, multiply typical examples and “good people, good deeds” examples, and use the task performance as the yardstick for evaluating collectives and individuals, thereby giving impetus to successfully fulfil the assigned task.
To strengthen the party committees’ leadership over the improved quality of training, the Division’s Party Committee frequently consolidates the all-level party committees and focuses on making party organizations and especially party cells at companies pure and strong as the core in their units. Moreover, the Division proactively cooperates with local party committees and authorities in grasping the reservist resources under its management, selecting and initiating reservists into the Party, with priority given to those who are cadres of the frame B in order to ensure the Party’s leadership during the training process and prepare the human resources for local authorities. As a result, after being training, this force always promotes their role and responsibility, actively takes part in boosting economic development, maintaining political security and social safety, and building strong political bases.
Second, well carrying out the work of political, ideological education to raise cadres, soldiers, and reservists’ awareness and responsibility. The Division’s units strictly execute the political education program for their staff members in a comprehensive, focalized manner. In this regard, emphasis is placed on educating cadres and soldiers on the Party’s guidelines, the State’s law and policy, the Central Military Commission’s resolutions and directives on the military and defence missions, and particularly the Ordinance on the Reserve Force so as to help cadres, soldiers and reservists fully understand the reserve force’s role and the requirements for this force in the Homeland construction and protection as well as the Military and units’ task and the hostile forces’ plots and acts of sabotage. In the process, offices and units take proper measures for each specific situation, closely combine regular education with task-based education, and cooperate with local party committees, authorities and military offices, and reservists’ families in encouraging them to fulfil their task. Consequently, the awareness and responsibility of the Division’s cadres, soldiers and reservists towards the training task have been raised; they have shown their determination and responsibility and devoted efforts to fulfilling the task of training and combat readiness under no circumstance.
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| Tactical training for the reserve force |
Third, attaching significance to leadership and direction over the work of training preparation. This is an experience and important solution to improving the Division’s training work. Thus, the Division’s Party Committee and Command direct offices and units to make comprehensive, sufficient, qualitative, “scientific, effective, and timely” preparations for the training work in accordance with each unit’s particularities. At the same time, offices and units are required to focus on training their cadres and making them capable of training units at their level; to attach importance to training new contents, improving young, inexperienced cadres’ capability in the training work, and overcoming weaknesses in the previous training seasons. Up to now, 100% cadres of the frame A have been able to train their units; over 70% of cadres of the frame B have been capable of training their units. Meanwhile, platoon-level cadres have basically closely managed their units under the regulations.
To overcome difficulties in the budget and materials for the training work, the Division actively mobilizes resources from localities to prepare training aids and grounds, lesson plans, and other necessary materials. Besides, it steps up the movement to encourage initiatives and improve training aids. Over the past years, the Division has introduced a lot of initiatives of practical value which have greatly contributed to enhancing the training of reservists. Typical example is the “multifunctional folding rest” in the exercises which has been highly appreciated by the Military Region 2’s Command and used within the whole Military Region. Besides, the Division always ensures salary and allowance for reservists and properly conducts the Army Rear Policy so that reservists could keep their mind on their units.
Fourth, frequently renewing the training programs, contents, and methods. As reservists under the Division’s management are in a large number and diverse in terms of intellectual level, age and health, it is hard to improve the training quality. Thus, the Division determines to renew the training programs, contents, and methods as a breakthrough; to raise the quality of training cadres as the key; to use the quality of training and exercises as the yardstick for evaluating the reform in the training work. Adhering to the motto of “practicality, steadiness, and thorough grasp”, the Division both directs the training programs from higher to lower levels and takes the training programs and contents proposed by offices and units into consideration, with emphasis placed on increasing the duration for practice in accordance with the task, objects of struggle, areas, and combat reality. Moreover, it closely combines military training with political education, military standard order, discipline management, and physical training, while training its troops to master the existing materiel and especially the reinforced one.
In addition, the Division pays due regard to consolidating the organizational structure of the training units both qualitatively and quantitatively. To enhance the training quality, it always attaches great importance to training cadres at all levels, particularly those who are in charge of the training work, new cadres, and cadres of the frame B; to closely combining concentrated training with groups-based training. Great value is attached to providing field training and night training for troops and fighting against subjectivity, arbitrary pruning of training contents, programs and duration, and dishonest report. The Division requires its cadres to stay close to the training ground, encourage troops in the training task, and actively apply information technology to the management and operation of training and exercises. It also accelerates the emulation movements on training, discipline management and combat readiness in line with the studying and following of Ho Chi Minh’s ideology, ethics and lifestyle as well as the Campaign entitled “promoting tradition, devoting talent, deserving to be Uncle Ho’s Soldiers”. At the same time, consideration is given to renewing the inspection of training results and contests during the training process, ensuring practicality and objectivity, and fighting against subjectivity, fearfulness for hardships, and “disease of bogus achievement” in the training task. As a result, the Division’s training of reservists has increasingly improved; the reservists have always readily undertaken and performed the task under the regulations.
Bringing into play the obtained results and experiences, the Division 355 will continue raising the quality of training reserve force, enhancing its synergy and combat strength, and ensuring that it will always successfully fulfil all assigned tasks.
Sr. Col. Nguyen The Hai, Political Commissar of the Division 355