President Truong Tan Sang

70 years ago, under the leadership of the Communist Party of Indochina and President Ho Chi Minh, our people successfully carried out the great 1945 August Revolution which was a landslide victory and a resplendent milestone in the history of building and protecting the country in the 20^th century. The August Revolution eradicated the authority, rule yoke, suppression, and exploitation of colonialist and feudalist regime in Vietnam, bringing power to the people, giving birth to the Democratic Republic of Vietnam - a state of the people and for the people, taking the people from the slavery position to the masters of the country, ushering in a new era in the history of development of our country. It was also a death blow to colonialism, imperialism and their colonial system; being a bright symbol and a powerful motive force for national liberation movements globally, particularly for struggles in colonies against imperialism and colonialism’s rule yoke for national independence.

Victory of the August Revolution is the outcome of our people’s 15-year heroic struggle, under the Party’s leadership with incalculable sacrifice and hardship. That struggle included 3 big revolutionary movements, also considered as 3 general rehearsals, namely the revolutionary high tide 1930-1931 with Nghe Tinh Soviet movement as the most outstanding example; the democratic campaign 1936-1939 gathering millions of people to fight for freedom, democracy, and improved living condition; the campaign for national liberation 1939-1945 by the Anti-Imperialist United Front, Viet Minh Front, and organizations for national salvation, in this period, our Party focused on building revolutionary force of the masses and propaganda armed forces, launching national salvation movement, and establishing the Viet Bac revolutionary base in preparation for the General Uprising.

The August Revolution is the victory of our nation’s passionate patriotism and indomitable will built up over thousand years of constructing and protecting the country. As Uncle Ho said: “Once the country is invaded, patriotism reaches high, making up an extremely huge and powerful wave that could overcome all dangers and hardships, plunging all traitors and aggressors”. The traditional patriotism and indomitable will were inherited and brought into full play at highest level in our people’s struggle under the Party’s leadership with the determination “rather sacrifice everything than lose the country and be enslave”, “Nothing is more precious than independence and freedom”.

The August Revolution is the victory of sound revolutionary guideline laid down by our Party and President Ho Chi Minh, of the guideline to carry out people’s democratic national revolution against colonialism and feudalism for the Homeland’s independence and freedom, happiness for the people. It clearly pointed out the liberation of the nation was the top priority, and the strength of whole-nation great solidarity was the revolutionary force. At that time, although there were only nearly 5,000 communist party members nationwide, they were closely linked themselves with the people, protected and supported by the people. They always give top priority to the country and the people’s interests, staying indomitable and resilient against the enemy’s suppression, imprisonment, and brutal torture; many of them heroically sacrificed their lives for their noble ideal. Along with the Party’s sound guideline, it was resilience, heroic sacrifice, pure morals of communist party members that enlightened, attracted, and gathered the masses to follow the Party and its revolutionary movements, creating invincible strength of the Revolution.

The August Revolution is the victory of the Party and President Ho Chi Minh’s art of leadership in creating and taking advantage of opportunity, combining the strength of the nation with that of the times to launch the General Uprising and seize power. When the second World War broke out, anticipating that failure of the Fascism would create a good opportunity for our revolution, Uncle Ho returned to the homeland to directly instructed the task of force preparation for the foreseeable opportunity. When Japan staged a coup against France in Indochina on March 9^th 1945, our Party issued the historic Directive “The Japanese French Clash and Our Action” pointing out things to be done immediately for the General Uprising. When Japan capitulated to the Allied countries, Japanese troops in Vietnam became panicked and slack. Taking advantage of the opportunity, our Party immediately launched the General Uprising. Thanks to elaborate preparation, uprisings quickly broke out and gained victories in big cities: August 19^th in Hanoi, August 23^rd in Hue, August 25^th in Saigon- Cho Lon; within almost a fortnight, the General Uprising was successful all over the country.

This year, the entire Party, people, and military are solemnly celebrating the 70^th anniversary of August Revolution (August 19^th 1945 – August 19^th 2015) and National Day of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (September 2^nd 1945 – September 2^nd 2015) in the context of historic achievements of 30-year reform, and the Party congresses at all levels in preparation for the 12^th National Congress. This is the time for us to look back on the revolution’s periods with numerous sacrifice and hardships butglorious feats of arm of our Party and people over the past 70 years, to educate the youth about patriotism, resilience, and pride of their heroic Vietnamese nation, glorious Party, and great President Ho Chi Minh; raising faith, courage, and determination of the whole Party, people, and military to overcome difficulties, challenges and gain new victories in the cause of building and protecting the Homeland of socialist Vietnam in the new period.

Today, in the world, in spite of the fact that peace and cooperation for development are the mainstream, there are still complicated developments with unpredictable destabilizing factors. Local wars, armed conflicts, disputes over natural resources, sovereignty, and territory, religious and ethnic conflicts, secession, riots, and terrorist attacks are intense in many areas. Issues such as finance security, energy security, water security, food security, information and cyber security, climate change, natural disasters, and diseases become global challenges. Asia – Pacific region, including Southeast Asia, is a dynamic region. However, there is also intense competitions between major countries in this region; disputes over seas and islands will be more complicated; it can not be excluded the possibility that there would be a sudden change in the East Sea.

Domestically, the country’s reform, socio-economic development, defence and security consolidation, diplomacy, and international integration have gained significant achievements. Our country has disposed of poverty and underdevelopment to become a middle-income country, people’s living standard has improved, the country’s status, power, synergy, and international prestige have been raised. However, those achievements have not yet met the country’s potentials and advantages. Economic development has not been sustainable yet, mainly depending on natural resources exploitation, natural advantages, cheap labour, thus productivity, quality, and competitiveness are low. Living conditions of a certain part of people are still in difficulty, particularly ethic people in remote and restricted areas. The four risks pointed out by our Party still exist, even become more serious in some aspects; there appears a new risk called “self-evolution”, “self-transformation” in a number of cadres, party members, and people. Hostile forces are boosting the implementation of “peaceful evolution” strategy and sabotage against us in political, economic, ideological, cultural, democratic, human rights, ethnic, and religious fields, promoting “self-evolution” and “self-transformation”;  disputes in the East Sea are challenging our sovereignty over seas and islands.

The above mentioned situation of the world, the region, and the country provides us with both advantages, opportunity, and difficulties and challenges; imposing new requirements on the cause of protecting the Homeland of socialist Vietnam. To firmly defend the country’s independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity, the whole Party, people, and military need to promote the spirit of August Revolution, striving for the successful implementation of the Party Central Committee’s Resolution on “Strategy to defend the Homeland in the new situation” with a focus on the following tasks:

First, building a pure and strong Party with qualified leadership and combat competence; strengthening the Party’s leadership over the cause of protect the Homeland.

Second, building a socialist ruled-by-law State of the people, by the people, for the people; improving the effectiveness of state management on the task of defence, security, and Homeland protection.

Third, improving social-economic development to increase the country’s synergy; building and promoting the strength of the nation’s great solidarity; expanding foreign relations, being proactive in international integration, combining the strength of the nation and that of the times to defend the Homeland.

Fourth, strengthening defence and security, building the “revolutionary, regular, seasoned, gradually modern People’s Army and People’s Public Security” to meet the requirements of Homeland protection in the new situation.

Promoting the spirit of August Revolution, under the Party’s leadership, and with the effort of compatriots and soldiers nationwide, undoubtedly we will successfully fulfill the goal of firmly protecting the Homeland of socialist Vietnam in the new situation.

Truong Tan Sang

Member of the Politburo, President of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam