III. Lessons drawn from the realities of building “solid milestones in the people’s hearts and minds”

Building “solid milestones in the people’s hearts and minds” is a matter of urgency for the sake of the consolidated political system, socio-economic development, hunger eradication and poverty reduction, and strengthened national defense and security. Thanks to a high degree of political will, a great sense of responsibility, and practical measures, the Border Guard Force (BGF) have gained significant achievements in building “solid milestones in the people’s hearts and minds” in the thickly forested Central Highlands, particularly in border areas which are home to a lot of ethnic minorities, contributing to firmly safeguarding sovereignty and border security. A number of valuable lessons have been drawn in the process.

First, ceaselessly enhancing the quality of communication and education among ethnic minorities in the Central Highlands. How to make the people understand, trust and devote themselves to the Party is a matter of urgency at the moment and high on the agenda of mass mobilization, which is part of the BGF’s profession. Only when there is a full understanding, do the Party’s and the people’s wishes converge. Accordingly, the people single-mindedly devote themselves to effectively implementing the Party’s line and the State’s policies and laws, as well as to actively participating in production activities for their improved living standards, socio-economic development programs, and strengthened national defense and security for Homeland protection.The achievements in building “solid milestones in the people’s hearts and minds” in the thickly forested Central  Highlands partly result from the fact that the BGF has succeeded in communication and education, thereby heightening awareness among local ethnic minorities. Nowadays, demanding requirements are imposed on the task of safeguarding territorial sovereignty and border security, with intertwined advantages and  disadvantages. Therefore, it is necessary that the BGF should provide local administrations with practical advice on the continued reform of communication and education among ethnic minorities in the Central Highlands. Communication and education should focus on the Party’s line, the State’s policies and laws, particularly the Resolution of the 12th National Party Congress, the Resolution of the 11th Party Central Committee’s 8th Plenum on “the Strategy for Homeland defense in the new situation”, the Government’s decrees on the building of unceasingly strong provincial and municipal defense zones, on plans for the implementation of military/defense tasks and Homeldand defense, as well as local administrations’ resolutions on the strengthening of national defense and security, the building of the all-people national defense and the all-people national defense posture associated with the people’s security posture and the all-people border defense posture in the Central Highlands in the new situation, and plots and artifices by hostile forces and opportunist elements to sabotage the nation. At the same time, the BGF should thoroughly grasp the local situation and closely cooperate with local administrations in deciding on the content of communication and education to match ethnic minorities’ knowledge levels while clearly identifying objects of cooperation and objects of struggle, friends and enemies as well as resolutely countering wrong and reactionary viewpoints. In order for ethnic minorities to have their awareness promoted, communication and education is required to be persistent and focalized with various forms and methods in line with localities’ demographic characteristics while importance should be attached to promoting the roles played by the political system and social organizations.

Moreover, it is necessary to develop new forms and methods to make the contents of communication and education easy for ethnic minorities to understand, to remember and to follow. Due to demographic and cultural characteristics in the Central Highlands, particular attention should be devoted to visual aids such as leaflets in national language and ethnic minorities’ languages, to the promotion of villages patriarchs’ roles, as well as to the incorporation of the contents of communication and education into the nation’s and local ethnic minorities’ cultural festivals. Against the backdrop of a boom in information technology, communication and education should be appropriately promoted through the mass media and social networks. Meanwhile, emulation movements should be accelerated so that “everyone emulates, every sector emulates and emulation takes place every day” and “those who emulate are the most patriotic”, thereby identifying and multiplying role models in managing and safeguarding territorial sovereignty and border security.

Second, actively participating in socio-economic development, hunger eradication and poverty reduction for the people’s improved living standards. How to make the people understand is a necessary condition and how to make the people trust is a sufficient condition. The effectiveness of building the “solid milestones in the people’s hearts and minds” depends on the improvement in ethnic minorities’ living standards. When the people enjoy an abundant and happy life, their trust in the Party, the State, the military in general and the BGF in particular, is fostered. As a result, the BGF should continue to closely cooperate with local administrations in effectively implementing the Government’s programs and plans for socio-economic development, hunger eradication and poverty reduction, especially Resolution 80/2011/NQ-CP on sustainable poverty reduction, the campaign “For the poor”, the campaign “The whole country join hands in building new-style rural areas”. Concurrently, the BGF should advise local administrations on programs and projects for socio-economic development in combination with the consolidation of national defense and security and the protection of border security while fully cooperating with neighboring countries’ counterparts. In order to ensure the effectiveness of its participation in socio-economic development, the BGF should continue to boost the performance of programmes for socio-economic development, hunger eradication, poverty reduction and social security that have been put to the test while developing new programmes in line with localities’ demands. Accordingly, apart from such programmes as “Homes for the poor in border areas”, “Supporting children’s schooling”, the BGF should enhance the effectiveness of the Campaigns “Promote traditions and devote talent to deserve to be Uncle Ho’s soldiers” and “The Border Guard Force join hands in building new-style rural areas” as a matter of routine through specific programmes and plans. In the process, the BGF should actively advise local administrations on preferential policies on personnel, finance, healthcare, education, land, vocational training and job creation so that local ethnic minorities can settle down and enrich themselves in border areas. One of the lessons drawn suggests that in order to earn the people’s trust, actions speak louder than words. Therefore, the BGF should continue to closely cooperate with local administrations in promoting the campaign “the entire people unite in building cultural life” with emphasis being placed on effectively enforcing Regulations on Democracy at grassroots level and villages/hamlets’ regulations, as well as on encouraging ethnic minorities to eradicate depraved customs towards the development of the progressive Vietnamese culture imbued with national identity. At the same time, the BGF should stay vigilant against hostile forces’ plots and artifices and foster local ethnic minorities’ trust in the Party, the State and the socialist regime, thereby firmly safeguarding territorial sovereignty and border security. Importance should be attached to self-management among families, villages and hamlets, as well as roles played by local religious dignitaries. Local households and collectives should be assigned to participate in the self-management of  borderlines and border markers, and to obey regulations on border affairs, as well as villages/hamlets’ regulations on security and public order towards the strength of “the posture of the people’s hearts and minds” in the process of managing and safeguarding territorial sovereignty and border security right at grass-roots level. Movements should be promoted and multiplied such as “The masses participate in building and safeguarding border areas”, “The masses participate in self-management of borderlines, border markers and public order in border villages and hamlets”, “The youth work as pioneers in safeguarding borderlines”, “Village patriarchs work as role models”, “Illiteracy eradication and primary education popularization among ethnic minorities’ children”, “Parishes serve as role models”, “The twinning of residential clusters on both sides of the border”.

Third, actively participating in strengthening the political system at grass-roots level and fostering close-knit relations with the people. The strong political system, particularly Party organizations and administrations, is an essential prerequisite for building “solid milestones in the people’s hearts and minds”. In addition to sending officers to local Party cells’ meetings, the BGF should put great store by Party building, personnel training and capacity building, the initiation of new Party members, and  making  hamlets and villages  no longer devoid of Party organizations and Party members. Importance should be attached to selecting and calling up individuals from ethnic minorities and religious communities for military service right at border guard units in order to prepare them for unfilled vacancies in local administrations in the foreseeable future. In accordance with Ho Chi Minh’s teaching that “think with a brain, see with eyes, listen with ears, walk with feet, speak with a mouth, do with hands”, the BGF should focus on making “the military and the people share the same will” and thorougly grasping local customs and religions so as to undertand what the locals say and make them understand what it says. Special attention should be paid to “words matching deeds”. The BGF’s cadres and soldiers are to strictly obey military discipline, to lead a life of morality, simplicity and modesty, to wholeheartedly care for local ethnic minorities and to devote themselves single-mindedly to promoting the image of “Uncle Ho’s soldiers”, thereby enabling the masses to be fully aware of and to actively participate in safeguarding territorial sovereignty and border security in the Central Highlands.

Thanks to its full awareness and great sense of responsibility, the BGF in the Central Highlands has  effectively implemented multiple practical measures for building the all-people national defense and the all-people national defense posture associated with the people’s security posture and the people’s border defense posture. This has enabled the political system and locals in border areas to have their awareness and sense of responsibility promoted, contributing to building “solid milestones in the people’s hearts and minds” and firmly safeguarding territorial sovereignty and border security. (The end)

Dinh Khang, Ho Dang & Dang Bay