Binh Lieu is a mountainous border district of Quang Ninh province, sharing a 43-km-long border with China, having harsh terrain. It is inhibited by mainly the ethnic minority people (96%) with the uneven intellectual level, many depraved customs, and a high rate of poverty. Over the past years, the district’s Party Committee and People’s Committee have grasped and carried out the two strategic tasks by means of synchronous measures, promoted the locality’s strength and potential, and aroused a sense of unity and effort among party committees, authorities, sectors, and the people to determinedly develop the district comprehensively in the economic, cultural, social, defence, security, diplomatic terms as a “protective shield” in the Northeastern border area.

The District Military Party Committee’s Meeting on assessing the performance of the military-defence task in the second quarter of 2019

Building an economically and socially strong district

Fully aware that economy plays a decisive role in the social development and acts as the basis for consolidating defence and security, the Congress of the District’s Party Committee for the 2015-2020 tenure determined to “exploit the locality’s potential and strength, mobilize and effectively use all resources, strive to achieve a high economic growth rate, and focus the economic restructuring on increasing the proportion of trade, services, and cottage industries”. To achieve that objective, the district has formulated and executed many plans, programs, and projects for the socio-economic development. It should be noted that the district has completed the master plan for socio-economic development towards 2020, with a vision towards 2030 in line with the plan on the military posture within the defensive zone. To do so, the district has actively mobilized resources in building the Hoanh Mo - Dong Van Border Gate Economic Zone as the driver of the economic development; made plans on agriculture, forestry, traffic system and irrigation in accordance with local particularities; promoted the potential of its landscape, geographical position, and culture to develop tourism and services as an important economic sector. Notably, the district has focused on developing socio-economic infrastructure and prioritized investments in traffic lines and border patrol road. Up to now, the district has completed many key projects, such as the bridge connecting the border gate pair of Hoanh Mo (Vietnam) and Dong Zhong (China), and the Provincial Road 341, thereby facilitating goods transport and the development of border trade and services. It has kept broadcasting its potential and strength, while releasing the plan on tourist lines and attractions to attract investments in types of tourism, such as ecosystem tourism and border tourism. The district has stepped up the restructuring of economic sectors in line with the projects on the development of agriculture, forestry as well as the building of new countryside; cooperated with the Economic-Defence Unit 327 in executing the project for hunger eradication and poverty reduction, helping the people restructure animal and crop husbandry and build the trademark, particularly for the trees of high economic value. To improve the competitiveness and facilitate the socio-economic development, the district has been active in administrative reform, adopted the preferential treatment policies for investment and enterprises, and attached importance to vocational training, especially for labourers in agriculture, forestry, and tourism.

Socially and economically, due attention has been paid to preserving and promoting the cultural value of ethnic minority groups, building and consolidating the system of health and education in order to improve the people’s intellectual level and health. Over the past years, the district has implemented the project on “preserving culture of the Tay, Dao, and San Chi peoples”, restored and maintained the traditional festivals, such as Hoa So and Luc Na Temple, and encouraged the people to remove depraved customs. Adopting those approaches, in 2018, Binh Lieu achieved a rather rapid economic growth rate; the proportion of services continued to be increased (57%); the peoples’ cultural identity was promoted; the work of education and health brought about a positive change while social welfare was ensured. Up to now, the district has fulfilled 12 criteria and 35 targets for the building of new countryside and completed the Program 135. Those results have provided an important basis for Binh Lieu to keep developing in the time to come.

Comrade Duong Manh Cuong presenting rewards to the collectives with outstanding achievements in building new countryside

Being firm in defence and security

In addition to socio-economic development, due regard has been paid to defence and security. Under the viewpoint of “not developing the economy at any rate”, the district has always included defence-security consolidation in the socio-economic development strategies and plans by authorities and sectors, while adhering to the motto of “being strong in potential and firm in posture”. Grasping the Party’s directives and resolutions on the military-defence task, particularly the Strategy for Homeland Protection in the New Situation, the 10^th Politburo’s Resolution 28-NQ/TW, the Government’s Decrees 152/2007/NĐ-CP and 02/2016/NĐ-CP on the defensive zones, and higher echelons’ guiding documents, the district has strengthened the state management of national defence work; strictly maintained the mechanism for leading and operating the defensive zone; built types of potential within the defensive zones to meet the defence-military task in both long and short terms. Besides, the district has provided defence-security education for all objects, raising the awareness and responsibility of cadres, party members, and the people towards the Homeland protection, laying a foundation for building strong political bases and a firm “posture of people’s hearts and minds”. In the process, the district has achieved many reforms in contents and forms of education and provided education for patriarchs and householders in the border villages and isolated, remote areas. Besides, the district has paid due attention to building and improving the political system, training and developing a contingent of ethnic minority cadres. Under the direction of the Provincial Party Executive Committee, 100% of heads of villages and quarters in the district’s area have also held the positions of secretaries of party cells; therefore, party committees’ leadership and authorities’ management have been improved.

Following the Provincial Party Executive Committee’s Resolution 03-NQ/TU on leading the defence work in the 2015-2020 period and Quang Ninh province’s Project on defence support in the 2015-2020 period, with orientation towards 2030, the district has mobilized all resources in building its defensive zone’s military posture. In spite of difficulties, the district has completed the plan on the military posture and initially built a number of essential defensive works, upgraded many dual-use works, such as Road 18C, border patrol road, embankments along border rivers and springs, bridges, sewers, and rural roads, and made them available for defence and security.

Great importance has been attached to making the armed forces strong and capable of the core role in performing the military-defence mission. Accordingly, the district has consolidated the organizational structure of the local armed forces and made them “compact and strong” in accordance with each force’s function and task. In this regard, due attention has been paid to building the comprehensively strong Military and Public Security offices with the proper structure under the regulations as well as maintaining their combat readiness. The reserve force has been made “strong and qualitative”. The district has maintained the order for registering and managing reservists and technical equipment for training courses and performance of the tasks in the event. The militia and self-defence force has been made “powerful and extensive” with the structure and quantity in accordance with each area as well as the increasingly high synergy, particularly the political quality. Besides, the district has undertaken researches and adjusted the deployment of the forces in line with the rearrangement of its population, while implementing the project to bring the people to the border, thereby creating a firm posture of all-people national defence. At present, all reserve units are staffed sufficiently; the district has established 30 militia and self-defence units; the militia and self-defence force accounts for 3% of its population while the rate of party members within this force is 14%; it has well maintained the operation of Hoanh Mo commune permanent militia squad. While building the forces, the district has directed the armed forces to stringently maintain the order for duty and combat readiness as well as raise the quality of training and exercises. Over the past years, the district has directed 100% of its communes to hold exercises; 70% of its communes have held combat exercises while 30% have organized natural disaster, forest fire, search and rescue drills. Those operations have greatly contributed to enhancing the party committees and authorities’ capability to settle defence-security situations and raising the local armed forces’ synergy.

Besides, the district has directed the Military Command, Public Security, Border Guard Post of Hoanh Mo Border Gate and other forces in the area to promote their core role in grasping and forecasting the situation and maintaining readiness for dealing with the defence-security situations, protecting the area and border sovereignty, and avoiding passivity. In addition to those measures, the district has synchronously taken measures to step up foreign affairs and the work of people-to-people exchange to promote a sense of unity between the authorities and peoples from the two sides of the border. It has maintained the twinning relationship between Hoanh Mo and Dong Van and Zhen Dong Zhong (Guangxi province), contributing to building a border of peace, friendship, and cooperation for development.

With the sound awareness and resolve, the Party Committee, Authority, and people of Binh Lieu district will strive to make the district economically strong, socially and culturally developed, and firm in defence and security to make contributions to the Homeland construction and protection.

Duong Manh Cuong

Secretary of the District Party Committee