Central Highlands holds strategic importance in defense and security to the country and the whole Indochina. Therefore, fostering socio-economic development and defense and security consolidation in the area is always a regular and urgent task, especially in the present context.

Over the past years, thanks to the attention of the Party and the State, the effort of the party committees, authorities, and people in the region, Central Highlands has seen significant achievements in economy, culture, society, defense, security and external relations. The political security is basically secured; socio-economic development enjoys fairly good growth rate; area connection and international integration witness positive changes; the material and spiritual lives of people, particularly ethnic minorities are increasingly improved. In the implementation of defense and security tasks, armed forces have actively grasped the situation and opportunely advised the local party committees and authorities to build and carry out plans for countering the plots and schemes of hostile and reactionary forces, thereby preventing the establishment of opposite political organizations. Complicated issues in political security, social safety and order are fundamentally settled, contributing to maintaining stability for socio-economic and cultural development. The potentials for defense and security are increasingly developed and consolidated; the all people’s defense posture in association with the people’s security and “people’s heart and mind” posture are increasingly strengthened. External affairs with localities of neighboring countries have been conducted effectively contributing to firmly protecting the security and sovereignty of national borders, and building a border of friendship, cooperation, peace and prosperity.

 However, socio-economic development of the Central Highlands still remains at low level which is not proportional to its potentials. There still exist latent complications in defense and security which can cause instability. The grassroots political systems of some localities have yet to become firm and effective. Poverty rates, especially in remote and border areas, remain at high levels. Illegal religious operations, migration, crimes, social evils, land disputes happen complicatedly. Notably, taking use of our open and integration policies, as well as the matters relating to “race, religion, democracy, human rights”, hostile and reactionary forces try to foster their acts of sabotage; cause contradiction among races; undermine the great unity bloc; incite the demand for separation and autonomy of ethnic minorities; revive the operation of FULRO and the establishment of the so called “Independent Degar State”, etc. These are aimed to cause instabilities in political security, social safety in the area as a pretext for foreign intervention and act of overthrowing, etc. These factors have direct impact on the defense, security, social safety and order of the Central Highlands and the stability and development of the country in general.

The above mentioned context is creating new conditions and opportunities, but also posing new threats directing impacting the accomplishment of defense and security tasks in the Central Highlands. In order to foster socio-economic development and strengthen defense and security in the region, it is necessary to implement a number of synchronous measures, with a focus on the following ones:

First, strengthen the leadership of the Party, the management of the State over the region. One of the causes to the low level of socio-economic development of the Central Highlands is that the policies and guidelines of the Party and the State haven’t been carried out in a synchronous, unified and effective manner. Therefore, localities in the region should continue to grasp and strictly adhere to the Party’s guidelines and the State’s laws and policies on socio-economic development, defense, security and foreign affairs. Together with restructuring of the political system, it is necessary to conduct overall study and assessment to propose solutions for implementation in accordance with the policies and guidelines for socio-economic development and defense and security consolidation. In particular, importance should be attached to settling relations between economy, culture, society and defense and security; between combating for sovereignty protection and maintaining a peaceful and stable environment; between economic growth and cultural development, social equality and progress, building people’s belief in the Party, the regime and party committees and authorities at all levels to create a stable environment, social safety, healthy environment, regional and international integration. At the same time, foster the building of the all people’s national defense, the all people’s defense posture in association with the people’s security posture, the building of defensive zones, “people’s heart and mind posture”. Further attention should be paid to the implementation of national programs for responding to non-traditional security threats, especially land dispute and desertification, drought and the settlement of ethnic, religious matter in order to curbing the cause to contradiction and conflict in the Central Highlands.

Second, pay attention to building and strengthening the grassroots political systems of localities in the region. For the past years, the grassroots political systems in this region have been established. However, there remain limitations, such as: party committees and authorities have yet to be active in discovering and settling the emerging issues; the quality and effectiveness of operation of cadres working in the political systems remain low in some places; a number of cadres and party members have shown signs of “self evolution”, “self transformation”, becoming helping hands for hostile forces, etc. This is a serious threat to the consolidation of the political system which requires that appropriate measures should be mapped out to enhance the leadership and management of the grassroots political systems. Therefore, localities should pay attention to nurturing and improving the political stance, leading and managing capability of party committees, authorities, unions, and cadres at the grassroots level so that they are able to discover and settle effectively emerging matters in their areas of responsibility, especially in key areas in defense and security. At the same time, it is necessary to improve the quality of planning, training, and recruiting cadres of ethnic minorities for both short term and long term demand; screen to prevent and expel the spoil ones; strengthen propagation and education to ethnic minorities to make them aware of the plots and schemes of hostile forces aiming to incite and separate the indigenous people from the Party and authorities, and from the Kinh people; uphold the synergy of organizations, forces and the entire political systems in the region in socio-economic development, defense and security consolidation, and improving living standard for ethnic people, thereby strengthening their trust, building the political system strong as a solid base for the stability and development of the Central Highlands.

Third, build armed forces in the region strong, meeting the requirements and mission in the new area. Central Highlands has long been a complicated region with latent risks of instability. To avoid passive and sudden situations, it is necessary to consolidate the organization and staff of armed forces in the region toward the elite, lean and powerful direction; improve the ability of units specialized in strategic studies and anticipations to meet the requirements and missions; build and enhance the efficacy of the militia and self-defense forces and public security force at grassroots level to make them the core forces in responding to sudden situations. Implement effectively the Resolution No. 22-NQ/TW of the Politburo on “Continuing to renew and restructure the Ministry of Public Security towards lean, effective direction”; accelerate the posting of uniformed police to all communes of the region. The riots in the years of 2001 and 2004 taught us that units of the Military and Public Security should regularly stick to the grassroots to grasp the situation; actively conduct training to enhance their level of combat readiness; build and practice thoroughly plans of protection; strengthen the work of internal political protection. Particularly, enhance the coordination and collaboration among forces in grasping, anticipating and evaluating the situation and information sharing; decide on the guidelines, measures, responsibility in advising, directing, managing and settling of defense and security situations. Besides, proactively collaborate in countering the wrongful arguments of hostile forces to protect the Party’s ideology; actively and opportunely discover, combat, prevent the signs of degradation, and internal “self evolution”, “self transformation”.

In addition, localities should develop potentials for defense and security; strengthen the all people’s national defense in association with the people’s security and the “people’s heart and mind posture”; create an active defense in protecting the national territory and sovereignty; prevent and deter soon and from afar the plots and schemes of “Peaceful Evolution” of hostile forces; avoid passive and sudden situations, especially acts of terrorism, riot, overthrowing, and the establishment of opposite political organizations in the region. Combat to prevent and counter all kinds of crimes, illegal actions, social evils; enhance the efficacy of state management in security, social safety and order, contributing to build a disciplined, safe and healthy society for the socio-economic and cultural development of the region. Strengthen foreign relations and international cooperation in defense and security to yield practical results in settling issues relating to national border and sovereignty in the region, contributing to firmly protecting the territorial integrity, sovereignty and unification of the Vietnam socialist Fatherland.

Colonel, Nguyen Yen Thanh, PhD., the People’s Public Security Political Academy