Discipline is the strength of the Army, thorough grasping that spirit, over the years, this work has been regularly focused by agencies and units throughout the army, creating a lot of positive changes. However, due to different reasons, both objective and subjective, the situation of discipline violations in some agencies and units has not been reduced. Therefore, strengthening discipline education and management in the whole army has been an urgent issue; requires the implementation of several drastic and synchronous solutions, creating the collective strength to ensure that the Army always successfully completes all assigned tasks.

Discipline is a fundamental factor creating the overall quality and combat readiness capability of the Army. In particular, discipline education and management has a leading position and important role - the endogenous strength that makes up "iron, self-awared and strict discipline". Being well aware of this problem, over the years, the party committees and commanders of agencies and units throughout the army have focused on guiding, directing, comprehensively and synchronously implementing solutions to improve the quality of discipline education and management, creating positive changes, contributing to the completion of key political tasks. In fact, the vast majority of cadres and soldiers in the whole army have a stable ideology, peace of mind in their work, are ready to take and complete all assigned tasks, always love and stick to building the agency and unit; relations between seniors and juniors, comrades and teammates are resolved harmoniously; awareness, responsibility and sense of self-discipline to abide by the State's laws and military discipline has been gradually improved; the strict regulations in training, combat readiness, study and work are maintained; the protection of internal politics, military secrets, and national secrets is strictly complied, etc. These achievements prove that discipline education and management in the whole army is organised and maintained seriously, closely and firmly, creating a foundation and motivation for the whole army to successfully complete the assigned tasks, including numerous excellently completed tasks.

However, the violations of State law and military discipline by some agencies and units over the past time have not yet decreased; incidents of unsafety in traffic, unsafety at work, training and manoeuvres have not ended; serious disciplinary violations leading to death and having to be penalised still occurs, etc. The above factors have generated negative public opinions, spoiled the image of revolutionary "Uncle Ho's Soldiers" as well as the honour and prestige of the Army. The causes to the above situation include the negative effects of the market economy, social evils, and complicated crimes that have crept into agencies and units; cadres,  soldiers and their families are still facing a lot of difficulties in life, etc. In addition, the party committees and commanders of a number of agencies and units still underestimated and did not pay appropriate attention to the work of discipline education and management; a number of cadres and soldiers lack training and cultivation along with self-indulgent way of life. In particular, there are cases of abusing positions and powers for embezzlement and corruption that resulted in serious punishments; self-criticism and criticism are limited, some are afraid to struggle and avoid conflicts; the observance of disciplines and law has not been self-conscious and serious; inspections and punishments are not appropriate and tough enough to deter and prevent violations of law and disciplines, etc.

A seminar on disciplining for military youth (Photo. qdnd.vn)

In the coming time, the rapid and complicated changes of the region and the world along with negative impacts of social life in Vietnam will make our cause of Fatherland protection face both opportunities and intertwined challenges; in which there are factors that directly affect military discipline management. In order to build a revolutionary, regular, elite, and modernised Army advancing straight to modernity, agencies and units in the whole army need to improve the work of discipline education and management, prevent, control, and minimise violations of discipline and law. The focus should be on the following contents:

Firstly, promote the role of party committees and commanders at all levels in leading and directing education and discipline management. Party committees and commanders of agencies and units in the whole army must regularly and deeply grasp resolutions and directives on discipline and law observance, especially Conclusion No. 1249-KL/QUTW, dated November 27, 2019 of the Central Military Commission on the discipline observance of the whole army; Directive No. 103/CT-BQP, dated November 28, 2019 of the Ministry of National Defence on continuing to improve management, education in discipline observance and safety insurance in the Vietnam People's Army; Instruction No. 2556/HD-CT, dated December 30, 2019 of the General Department of Politics on party work and political work in management, education in law and military discipline observance, and safety insurance in the Vietnam People's Army, etc. On that basis, agencies and units shall develop thematic resolutions of leadership; concretise into specific content and action plan for this work and consider it as a breakthrough stage, and at the same time put it into the work plan of commanders and leaders at all levels. During the implementation process, regularly grasp, review and promptly advise the superiors to adjust and supplement appropriate solutions; combine with the roles, responsibilities, and exemplary vanguard status of the cadres, especially those who are managers and commanders. Along with that, regularly review and supplement rules and regulations; strengthen the inspections and supervisions, conduct period summations and year-end summations to review, discover and encourage typical examples, practices and models; promptly prevent and eliminate negative practices.

Regularly promote propaganda and education, create positive and steady changes in awareness and actions, promote and uphold the self-discipline of cadres and soldiers in observing discipline and law. Contents of propaganda and education must be complete, comprehensive and practical. In particular, special attention should be paid to the education and nurturing knowledge of law for the soldiers, with different and diversified forms and methods, suitable for each soldier and the characteristics of agencies and units. In addition, regularly inform and update the situation of violations of discipline and law in the whole army to all soldiers; clearly specify the content, nature, causes and consequences to promptly draw lessons for agencies and units.

Secondly, strengthen measures to manage and maintain discipline. This is an important solution, a decisive factor to the quality of discipline training and regularity building. Therefore, party committees and commanders of agencies and units must regularly grasp, analyse and accurately assess the soldiers' thoughts, aspirations and ideological developments. Thus, take proper measures to manage and solve problems arising at the grassroots level, prevent complicated and prolonged cases; thoroughly eradicate the state of bureaucracy, unmindfulness and insensitivity to the difficulties, problems and frustrations of cadres and soldiers. The management and maintenance of discipline must be comprehensive at all levels and branches, at all times, in all places, in all conditions; the focus is on managing and maintaining discipline through the system of party organisations, command organisations and mass organisations, properly performing their responsibilities and tasks, avoiding the phenomenon of turning off and violating regulations. In addition, it is necessary to promote cultural, artistic and sports activities, create a healthy and useful playground to attract a large number of cadres and soldiers to participate in, especially during holidays and breaks. Regularly organise discussions, seminars, thematic talks, contests about legal knowledge in order to raise awareness and responsibility for cadres and soldiers while observing discipline. Along with that, it is necessary to promote the implementation of the Determined to win Emulation movement, associated with Studying and following Ho Chi Minh's thought, morality and style; building up agencies and units with "regular, healthy" cultural environments, etc.

Thirdly, coordinate closely with local party committees, authorities and families to educate and manage soldiers. Practice shows that the timely detection, inhibition and prevention of soldiers’ violations is a highly effective solution in managing and maintaining discipline in each agency and unit. Therefore, party committees and commanders at all levels must regularly discuss with local party committees and authorities to grasp their aspirations and family circumstances, promptly encourage and help soldiers to overcome difficulties. Coordinate with local military agencies to successfully recruit citizens to join the Army. Young people who do not meet the standards of morality and health will not be enlisted in the Army. In addition, coordinate closely with families, investigate the records of young people before enlistment; therefore, build up solutions to educate, orient, and help soldiers in the process of performing their duties, so as to prevent them from social evils and being disoriented by the distorted claims of hostile and reactionary forces, contributing to the prevention of "self-evolution", "self-transformation". When an incident of violation of State law and military discipline occurs, party committees and commanders of units should coordinate actively and closely with localities, families and functional agencies to grasp the case situation, find out the exact causes, promptly propose solutions, ensure high consensus, handle the case in accordance with regulations, quickly stabilise the situation, avoid bad public opinion.

Fourthly, proactively detect, promptly and strictly handle all manifestations and acts of violating discipline and law. In order to prevent and minimise violations of law and regulations, party committees and commanders at all levels must regularly and deeply grasp the documents of the Party Central Committee, Central Military Commission, and the Ministry of National Defence on the prevention and elimination of corruption, negative practices, waste and mechanism to detect and handle corruption and negative practices. Hence, develop plans for inspections, examinations, audits and supervisions, focusing on sensitive areas, prone to corruption, negative practices and cases of public concern. During the implementation process, if detecting signs of a crime, immediately hand over it to investigating agencies for handling, without waiting for the conclusion and vice versa. During the investigation process, party members or party organisations, who show signs of violations, must immediately be handed over to superior party organisations for consideration of signs of violations.  At the same time, it is necessary to coordinate with functional agencies to deal with it in accordance with the provisions of the law, attaching the responsibilities of the leaders and involved persons to enhance deterrence and prevention. In addition, functional agencies, managers who are responsible for maintaining discipline and law need to thoroughly abolish the wrong assessments and forecasts of situations, advise and handle inaccurate violations that cause difficulties in handling, resulting in prolonged complaints and denunciations. Moreover, soldiers who show signs of violating law or discipline are strictly forbidden to retire or discharge from the Army.

Senior Colonel NGUYEN THANH HUY, Head of the Criminal Investigation Department, Ministry of National Defence