Tuyen Quang, a province rich in revolutionary traditions, was selected by the Party Central Committee and Uncle Ho as the Safe Zone - "the Resistance Capital" - to lead the August Revolution and the resistance war against the French colonialism. During the resistance wars against foreign aggression to protect the Fatherland, Tuyen Quang had thousands of excellent people who participated in fights, sacrificed, and devoted their blood to liberate the homeland and unify the country, that led to a high number of people with meritorious services to the revolution and policy beneficiaries. However, Tuyen Quang is a mountainous province with unstable economic growth and lack of synchronous infrastructure. Meanwhile, the contingent of officials and employees performing the policy work is fluctuated and inexperienced, especially at the grassroots level, etc. That situation has significantly affected the Provincial Armed Forces’ performance of the policy work towards the Army and the Army rear.

To well perform this important task, first of all, the Provincial Military Party Committee and Military Command have focused on leading and directing the subordinate agencies and units to thoroughly grasp the superiors’ directives, resolutions, and decisions on the policies towards the Army and Army rear, particularly Directive No.14-CT/TW issued on July 19^th, 2017 by the Secretariat of the Party Central Committee (the 12^th Tenure) on continuing to strengthen the Party's leadership over the policy work towards people with meritorious services to the revolution, Directive No.24-CT/TW issued on May 15^th, 2013 by the Politburo (the 11^th Tenure) on continuing to promote the search and gathering of martyrs' remains to 2020 and beyond, Conclusion No.63-KL/TW issued on May 27^th, 2013 by the Central Party Executive Commission (the 11^th Tenure) on a number of issues in relation to the reform of the salary policy, social insurance, and preferential benefits for people with meritorious services and reform orientation to 2020, and Directive No.368-CT/QUTW issued on June 12^th, 2016 by the Central Military Committee Standing Commission on strengthening the leadership and direction over the policy work towards the Army and Army rear in the 2016-2020 period as well as the Ministry of National Defence’s circulars and instructions and the High Command and Military Region 2 Political Department’s documents. Accordingly, they have advised the Provincial People's Committee to issue the decision on establishing the Provincial Steering Commission and direct the units to establish respective steering commissions at all levels and the communal (ward and township) policy council perform the policy work as prescribed and promptly settle the regimes and policies for the cadres, soldiers, people, and policy beneficiaries to clearly understand the Party and State’s policies towards the Army rear. At the same time, they have also advised the Provincial Party Committee, Provincial People's Council, and Provincial People's Committee to promulgate documents, directives, and plans on policy work towards the Army rear and coordinated with local agencies, units, departments, branches, unions, and authorities in promoting propagation and dissemination to all strata of people about the Army rear, war invalid, and martyr work and the movement entitled "Gratitude repayment". As a result, it has created the consensus among all strata of the people and enhanced the sense of responsibility of the Party committees, local authorities, military agencies, units, and political and social organisations in implementing the Army rear policies.

Presenting gift to a Vietnam heroic mother in the province

Regularly implementing regimes and policies for people with meritorious services is both a responsibility and a moral to repay gratitude for the great sacrifice of generations of people. As the Province's policy beneficiaries, especially the ethnic minority people,  still face difficulties in life, the Military Command has actively advised and proposed to the Provincial Party Committee and Provincial People's Committee to establish the Steering Committee on Settlement of regimes and policies for people with meritorious services (Steering Committee 24). At the same time, it has directed to consolidate the Steering Committee 24 at districts and cities and the Steering Committee 24 standing agencies and Policy Council at communes, wards, and townships. Annually, the Provincial Military Command has directed military agencies of districts and cities in closely coordinate with the local party committees, authorities, and mass organisations in developing synchronous implementation plans to ensure democracy, publicity, transparency, timeliness, and compliance with the Party and State's regimes and policies towards policy beneficiaries. It has also regularly reviewed and promptly solved problems, not to let long backlog and strengthened inspection, supervision, and rectification of the implementation of regimes and policies towards people with meritorious services to strictly ensure compliance with regulations without errors and negatives to create confidence among the people.

Attention has been paid to doing well the work search, gathering, and identification of martyr remains to contribute to alleviating sorrows and meet the expectations of the families of martyrs' relatives. Currently, the whole province still has nearly three thousand martyrs who have lost information and have not been identified. To well perform this sacred task, the Military Command has actively advised and proposed to the Provincial People's Committee to establish the Provincial Steering Committee on searching, gathering, and identifying martyr remains (Steering Committee 515). It has focused on leading and directing agencies and units to plan and well implement the work of searching and gathering martyr remains, especially drawing experience from the development of searching maps and gathering of martyr remains in the province. Besides, it has regularly consolidated the organisation, staffing of forces involved in searching and gathering; fostered qualities, competence, and profession for the cadres and employees to fulfill their assigned tasks; promoted the work of communication and propagation on the central and local mass media on searching and gathering martyr remains; coordinated with units, committees, local authorities, and mass organisations in mobilising the people to provide information on martyrs and martyrs' graves to relocate the remains cemeteries; and received, buried, searched, and gathered the martyr remains in accordance with regulations, local customs and practices that have been supported by the people.

Policies towards the Army and Army rear have been well implemented. The Provincial Military Party Committee and Military Command have focused on leading and directing agencies and units to well implement the regimes and policies towards soldiers, workers, defence officials, and people with meritorious services to ensure democracy, publicity, transparency, and fairness and create favorable conditions for the beneficiaries to enjoy properly, fully, and promptly as prescribed, especially families in extremely difficult circumstances. They have strictly, fully, and promptly implemented the current regimes and policies towards the forces, especially salaries, allowances, subsidies, and other policies and regimes under Decree No.21/2009/ND-CP and Decree No.116/2010/ND-CP of the Prime Minister. They have proactively coordinated and organised the implementation of the regimes for nursing, health rehabilitation, and health insurance under the Health Insurance Law and housing policy for military families and active military workers and defence officials in service with priority given to people with meritorious services and low-income earners. In implementing the "gratitude repayment" activities, the Provincial Military Command has always actively promoted all resources and coordinated with relevant local departments in mobilising businesses, benefactors, and socio-political organisations to support activities such as "gratitude repayment", hunger eradication and poverty reduction, new countryside construction, etc. With priority given to people with meritorious services and policy beneficiaries in revolutionary bases, remote and isolated areas, and communes with extremely difficult economic conditions. In 2020, the Provincial Military Command coordinated with agencies, departments, and socio-political organisations in the province donating 675 policy beneficiaries with an amount of VND 202,893,000 and visited and presented gifts for 290 people worth VND 127,800,000 on the Lunar New Year and VND 26,100,000 on the occasion of the South Liberation Day and the War Invalid and Martyr Day.

Caring for and implementing policies towards the Army and Army rear is a regular task with profound human significance, traditional beauty, and culture of the Vietnamese people. Promoting that tradition, Tuyen Quang Provincial Armed Forces have always been accompanying with all levels and sectors in supporting policy families to reduce difficulties and create conditions for them to continue promoting the tradition of "Uncle Ho's Soldiers" and the traditions of localities and families and contribute to building the Army rear and homeland to be wealthier.

Senior Colonel HA DINH KHIEM, Political Commissar of the Provincial Military Command