Today, promoting synergy to firmly protect national sovereignty over seas and islands is an urgent requirement, which has attracted the attention of the Party Committee and High Command of the Navy in leading, directing, and implementing. One of the key and cross-cutting tasks is improving the quality of coordination in sea and island propaganda.

Over the years, thoroughly grasping the resolutions and directives of the Party, the Central Military Commission, and the Ministry of National Defence as well as the direction and orientation of the Central Propaganda Commission, the Navy has actively coordinated with provinces, cities, central agencies, news agencies and press to implement the programme of coordination in sea and island propaganda, achieving good results. It has signed cooperation programmes with 63 out of 63 provinces and cities and 16 central agencies and news agencies, thus creating a legal basis and transparency during the implementation of this vital task. Coordination in sea and island propaganda has been implemented at various levels and branches, attracting a large number of participants. The contents, forms, and methods are increasingly comprehensive, in-depth, innovative, and creative, suitable for different subjects and areas, thus creating breakthroughs and spillover effect. The Navy’s “Gratitude” activities to help people eliminate hunger, reduce poverty, search and rescue, and overcome the consequences of natural disasters have been propagated widely and timely, having positive effects and high efficiency. Therefore, the awareness of cadres, soldiers, people, and compatriots abroad about the position, role, and importance of seas and islands in the strategies of national defence, socio-economic development, and international integration has been timely oriented; encouraging and promoting the roles of forces, organisations, and individuals in the implementation of marine economic development in association with national defence, security, and protection of sovereignty over seas and islands; improving the political-spiritual potential, strengthening the position of the people’s hearts and minds posture in association with the all-people defence posture and the people’s security posture at sea, thus creating synergy and firmly defending the sovereignty over national seas and islands.

1st Naval Region signs propaganda coordination programme with 6 provinces

Currently, the global and regional situation in general, and in the seas, including the East Sea in particular, is supposed to be complicated and unpredictable; strategic competition between major powers and territorial disputes in this region continue to escalate with increasing tension. The task of protecting the sovereignty over seas and islands has placed high demands on sea and island propaganda. Being the core force in performing this task, the Navy identifies improving the quality of sea and island propaganda as the key content that needs the leadership and direction of all-level party committees and organisations with synchronous and effective measures.

The coordination in sea and island propaganda is most effective when the leadership and direction of all-level party committees and commanders are promoted. Therefore, continuing to raise the awareness and responsibility of party committees, political commissars, junior political commissars, and commanders at all levels in leading and directing the coordination in sea and island propaganda is identified as a cross-cutting and decisive matter. The Navy’s Party Committee requires party committees at all levels to continue to thoroughly grasp the viewpoints and policies of the Party, the orientation of the Central Propaganda Commission, Central Military Commission, Ministry of National Defence, and General Department of Politics, the directives of the Navy’s Party Committee on sea and island propaganda. Units need to implement various forms of propaganda, such as conferences to grasp resolutions, seminars, practical activities of coordinated sea and island propaganda, etc. to raise the awareness of all-level party committees and commanders about the Party’s viewpoints and policies as well as the role of coordination in sea and island propaganda. Importance is attached to the responsibility of leading and directing the formulation and promulgation of regulations on coordination in sea and island propaganda, ensuring suitability to practical situations. In particular, during the formulation process, the coordination plan has to be highly feasible with no overlapping or gaps in its contents and objects; the coordination plan has to be comprehensive and focused; actively, proactively, extensively, and effectively bringing practical benefits to the Army, people, localities, agencies, units, and organisations in association with attracting resources to build the Navy. Besides, regularly paying attention to ensuring policies for cadres, reporters, propagandists, and forces while investing in upgrading facilities to make the propaganda activity more effective.

The Navy’s Party Committee and High Command advocate continuing to innovate the contents and forms of coordinated propaganda under the motto of “being in-depth, widespread, effective, close to reality, and close to the objects”, in which focus is on words of mouth and press propaganda. To make it effective, the Navy requires the content to be comprehensive with a focus on Vietnam’s Law of the Sea, the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, maritime boundaries delimitation agreements, foreign activities in the East Sea, legal basis affirming Vietnam’s sovereignty over the Spratly and Paracel Islands, conspiracies and plots of hostile forces and new foreign developments in the East Sea, and most importantly, the viewpoints of the Party and State in dealing with issues at sea, etc. Consequently, the awareness of the people about the complexity of the struggle to protect the sovereignty over seas and islands is raised, making them trust in the leadership of the Party and the management of the State as well as being steadfast against the conspiracies and resistance of hostile forces.

Regarding the oral form of propaganda, units and agencies should actively discuss with localities to determine the contents, methods, and objects to formulate a propaganda plan; research, draft, and provide information for coordination units; select qualified and experienced cadres to carry out the tasks. Reporters have to study and grasp the local issues to prepare the contents, practice the methods, and get the commanders’ approval before carrying out the tasks, ensuring that they are in line with higher echelons’ directions, having high combat capacity and real statistics as well as being comprehensible. In coordination with the mass media, it is necessary to exchange information and accord with the media agencies to send reporters, artists, and photographers to units and seas so that they can write articles and reports on newspapers, radio stations, and new sites. Moreover, building attractive and profound categories, such as “Vietnam’s seas and islands”, “Feelings when being at borders and seas”, “The Fatherland’s marine borders”, etc. Additionally, art exchange activities, such as “Towards the Fatherland’s seas and islands”, “Joining hands to light platforms”, “Border spring and island New Year”, etc. should be organised to create spiritual motivation for the soldiers and people living on islands and platforms to be determined to firmly protect national sovereignty over seas and islands. For the Navy Newspaper, it is necessary to continue to maintain the regime of exchanging and providing information and to send “The Navy television column” to 63 provinces and cities on a monthly basis to propagate and orient public opinion against the distorted information about the East Sea by hostile forces.

Coordinating to well organise practical activities towards the seas and islands is identified as a key content that needs to be implemented through forms of mass mobilisation and policies. Agencies and units proactively coordinate with localities to organise for central and local delegations, socio-political organisations and compatriots abroad to visit the Spratly Islands and DK1 platforms as well as islands in southwest coast. Good implementation of this work will directly foster people’s affection, raise their awareness and promote exchanges, making the Spratly Islands and DK1 platform closer to the mainland. In addition, members of those delegations can grasp practical situations to advise and propose to the Party, State, and localities solutions to develop marine economy, associated with ensuring national defence and security in the new situation. Furthermore, activities to help people eliminate hunger and reduce poverty, and support families with difficult circumstances should be organised, especially the programme “The Navy joins hands to build new-style rural areas and civilised cities”. Attention is paid to material and spiritual care for policy beneficiaries and people of meritorious services, building a strong political basis in seas and islands. The Navy regions and Saigon Newport Corporation directly cooperate with the Departments of Agriculture and Rural Development of 28 coastal provinces and cities to promote the programme “Vietnam Navy as a foundation for fishermen operating offshore”, in which, importance is attached to raising law observance of fishermen, giving first aid, and support essential materials for them at seas. Promoting the activity of “The Navy sponsoring fishermen’s children” for children under the age of 18 that are orphans or have incapable parents due to illnesses or accidents in 28 coastal provinces and cities, spreading the qualities of “Uncle Ho’s Soldiers - Navy Soldiers” in the new situation.

In order to make the coordination in sea and island propaganda stable and comprehensive, the Navy requires agencies and units actively exchange information and work with the Propaganda Departments of Provincial Party Committees to organise meetings to draw lessons in turn, according to their assigned functions and tasks, being specific, economical, and effective. After a task or propaganda activity, quickly coordinate to draw lessons and learn from experience; maintain the regime of annual and periodical preliminaries and summaries; properly assess the results, strengths, limitations, and shortcomings while drawing lessons from experience to adjust and supplement the contents, forms, and coordination measures in line with practical requirements, making the coordination gradually successful.

Coordination in sea and island propaganda plays a pivotal role in the struggle to protect national sovereignty over seas and islands. Being a core force, the Navy constantly upholds the positive spirit and actively coordinates with agencies, departments, branches, and localities to promote this work, contributing to the synergy of the whole political system and the people under the leadership of the Party in firmly protecting national sovereignty over sacred seas and islands.

Rear Admiral DO VAN YEN, Deputy Political Commissar of the Navy