In recent years, Hau Giang Province has made breakthroughs with multiple achievements in economy, culture, society, national defence, and security. However, the downsides of the market economy and rich-and-poor differentiation are affecting several aspects of social life. The situation of social security, order and safety, and traffic accidents has decreased but still remains complicated. Hostile forces are taking advantage of the issues of human rights, religion, and ethnicity to induce, illegally evangelize, and incite lawsuits on land disputes. The above factors have had a great impact on the renovation and comprehensive development of the province, especially the observance of the State law and the discipline of the Army of cadres, soldiers, and people. Being aware of this situation, the Provincial Military Party Committee and Military Command have synchronously deployed different practical and effective guidelines and measures for leadership and direction. In particular, promoting law propagation, dissemination, and education for the soldiers and people is a very important solution to maintain political security, social order, and safety and building a firm “people’s heart and mind posture” in the province.

The provincial armed forces participating in a legal contest

First of all, the Provincial Military Party Committee and Military Command have promoted the leadership and direction of the Party Committees at all levels in law propagation, dissemination, and education. The Provincial Military Party Committee Standing Commission has issued thematic resolutions and the functional agencies have advised the party committees and the persons in charge to develop plans. At the same time, it has also directed agencies and units to strictly grasp legal documents under the guidance of the Joint Council for Law Dissemination and Education of Military Region 9 and of the Province; to promptly supplement and consolidate the Joint Council for Law Dissemination and Education under the composition, structure, and working regulations; and to promote the role of advising and directing to ensure law propagation, dissemination, and education to achieve the set objectives and requirements. The reality shows that the quality of law propagation, dissemination, and education depends greatly on the capacity, skills, pedagogical methods, and experience of the reporters, teachers, and management cadres of agencies and units. Therefore, every year, the Provincial Military Party Committee and Military Command have actively organised training sessions for reporters under decentralisation and coordinated with functional agencies to carry out professional fostering. Particularly, cadres, besides on-the-job training, have also been sent to training courses at schools, while organisations’ fostering has been associated with individuals’ self-study. At the same time, they have done well the work of inspection, preliminary review, summary, detection, and replication of good practices and innovative and effective models and seriously rectified the limitations and shortcomings to put the activity into order.

During implementation, the Provincial Military Command has directed agencies and units to classify objects to apply appropriate propagation measures. In 2020, the Provincial Military Party Committee and Military Command directed agencies and units to foster and educate legal knowledge for the objects in the area with a total of 217 sessions and 17,668 turns of participants. The number of regular attendants was over 98%. 100% of the test results met requirement, of which over 75% were good and very good.

To achieve high efficiency, the Provincial Military Command has attached special importance to renewing the forms and methods of law propagation, dissemination, and education towards streamlining, being practical, and adhering to the cadres and soldiers’ life. Agencies and units have taken the initiative in formulating plans and contents, combining law propagation, dissemination, and education with basic political education and other forms, such as news notification, political announcement, and stage shows. The “Law Day” has been maintained in open directions, such as exchange, dialogue, discussion, legal advice, and organisation of the mass art contest entitled “All people prevent and fight against drugs”. Military agencies at all levels have proactively coordinated with units in the area and local Party committees and authorities in organising seminars to exchange and propagate the Party's lines and guidelines and the State’s policies and laws and foster national defence and security knowledge in association with mobilising religious dignitaries and believers to fulfill their civic duties to “live a good life with good faith”, etc. Besides, the Provincial Military Command has also coordinated with the press agencies of the province and the central government in the area to propagate, disseminate, and educate laws as well as reflect the observance of law and discipline the Provincial armed forces and examples of “good people and good deeds” among cadres and soldiers through the programs, namely “Laws and life”, “You may be concerned”, “TV mailbox”, etc. At the same time, it has directed agencies and units to promote the system of radios, televisions, newspapers, and law bookcases at the grassroots level or diversify propagation materials, such as books, leaflets, videotapes, audio discs, ... to attract a large number of cadres and soldiers to read, watch, and listen to, that has contributed to raising the law awareness.

To create a synchronous change from awareness to the voluntary observance of law and discipline of soldiers, agencies and units have closely combined law propagation, dissemination, and education with promotion of discipline management and maintenance and construction of regular order, safe areas, safety belts, and strong localities. Agencies and units have also strictly maintained the learning and working regimes, soldiers’ style; performed the principle of working under responsibilities and acting under military regulation; and resolutely prevented and strictly handled violations of discipline and law in training, combat readiness, and daily life. At the same time, in strictly implementing the Grassroots Democracy Regulation, cadres have always been close to soldiers to listen to opinions and grasp thoughts and aspirations to closely coordinate with families and localities in managing soldiers. Cadres and party members have been assigned to monitor and help soldiers who are in difficult circumstances and show signs of violation of discipline to help them avoid being dragged or seduced by bad elements. Also, the Provincial Military Party Committee and Military Command have closely coordinated with the local Party committees, authorities, the Fatherland Front, and mass organisations to carry out multiple measures of law propagation and dissemination for the people according to the master plan of the Provincial People's Committee. They have also coordinated with the Department of Justice in organising the Law Contest and, through national defense and security education, mass mobilisation, and natural disaster relief,...to propagate the local people to well implement the Party's undertakings and lines and the State's policies and laws. Thereby, it has contributed to raising awareness and sense of responsibility in ensuring security, social order, and safety in the area, creating a “safety corridor” in terms of discipline and law, and building a clean and strong stationing area.

Due to the good implementation of law propagation, dissemination, and education, it has made a strong change in management, training, building the regular order and discipline observance, and reduced violations of the State law and military disciplines among agencies and units. Since the beginning of 2018, the Provincial armed forces have seen no serious disciplinary violations, while common disciplinary violations have been reduced to less than 0.3%. Healthy relationships and internal solidarity and unity have been strengthened. Based on their achievements, in the coming time, Hau Giang Provincial Military Party Committee and Military Command continue promoting law propagation, dissemination, and education to raise awareness, sense, and actions of cadres, soldiers, and people in observance of State law, military discipline, and regulations of units, that is considered an important content to improve the overall quality and combat strength to ensure that the Provincial armed forces are always comprehensively strong to fulfill their assigned tasks.

Senior Colonel HUYNH VIET TRUNG, Commissar of the Provincial Military Command