"Revolutionary life since I understood"

Revolutionary memoirs of revolutionary veterans of the heroic homeland of Thanh Hoa .

“A historic spring”

“From a cadre working for the Revolutionary Youth Association, I was recruited into the Indochinese Communist Party. The new work assignment had many difficulties and hardships, but I was always excited to work” – the simple but sincere confessions, full of enthusiasm and dedication of comrade Nguyen Doan Chap in the memoir “A historic spring” take us back in time to give us a comprehensive and realistic view of the establishment of Ham Ha Party Cell - the first communist cell of Thanh Hoa province.

At that time, comrade Nguyen Doan Chap was assigned by the Northern Regional Party Committee to return to his hometown Thanh Hoa to build a grassroots party organization. Comrade Nguyen Doan Chap never forgot the moment when comrade Le Cong Thanh - representative of the Northern Regional Party Committee came to meet him and gave him a special "handbook" of the revolution along with his kind words of advice before he accepted the task of returning to Thanh Hoa to work: "I give you this "handbook". This is a very precious thing that must be kept carefully and absolutely secret. If an unexpected situation occurs, you must find every way to destroy it, not letting it fall into the hands of the enemy".

After the long journey back to Thanh, as soon as he got home, the excitement and enthusiasm of being trusted by the organization and assigned an important task made Mr. Chap want to immediately open the handbook to read the contents. But it was the sharpness and calmness of a revolutionary that made him carefully consider everything: “When I got home, I was eager to go on a mission right away, but I was afraid that my family and neighbors would suspect me, so I lingered at home for a few days and studied the contents of the secret letter. I took diluted tin-tuya-diode and smeared it on the first page of a white paper, the lines of writing stood out clearly. All the Revolutionary Youth Association bases in Dong Son were fully listed on the first page, with the aliases of the members and their addresses. Many people were listed with their occupations and positions such as village chiefs, village heads, etc. I memorized each name and carefully hid the secret letter so that when I went on a mission I wouldn't have to carry it with me in case of an unexpected incident.”

In the context of secret operations, where the enemy and friend were mixed up, communist soldiers with the same ideology had to go through a "battle of wits" before reaching an understanding and trusting each other enough to give each other confidential information. But after understanding each other and placing their trust in each other in the sacred word "comrade", revolutionary life had more warm memories: "That night, a summer night, the sky was full of moon and stars. It was late at night, we were still talking to each other. Although it was the first time we met, we were already close to each other when we called each other comrades".

According to the memoirs, the slices of the times and the revolutionary situation in Thanh Hoa at that time were clearly depicted. The thoughts, feelings and the eagerness and anticipation of having a communist cell were recorded in the memoirs containing so much love: "Like an electric current, this news was transmitted very quickly from one comrade to another, an excited, urgent but extremely cautious and discreet atmosphere preparing for the conference to establish the cell in Ham Ha".

To prepare for the Ham Ha Party Cell Establishment Conference: “Around Comrade Kieu’s house, shortcuts were opened to the fields, so that if they were discovered, they could quickly disperse. The signal for dispersal was the sound of swatting mosquitoes with a palm-leaf fan. If they heard two swatting sounds, they would immediately turn off the lights and everyone would silently leave the conference through their own pre-determined exit. If they heard the creaking sound of a door outside the gate, it meant that someone they knew was coming in. Just turn off the lights and sit still, letting the homeowner respond.”

“Growing up with the general staff”

“Growing up with the General Staff” are memoirs of comrades Le Oanh Kieu, Nguyen Doan Chap and several other comrades recorded in the revolutionary memoir “A historic spring” which gathers all the very common and very specific things of a generation that dares to accept challenges, dares to sacrifice, and is ready to let the “ego” blend into the larger “we” for the most common goal of fighting for national liberation.

What remains in the memoirs is the close affection between the masses and the communist soldiers: “Our familiar area of operation at that time started from Dong Son, Thieu Hoa and then extended to Tho Xuan... We remember every village name, every hamlet name, every crossroad, every river, every field, but most of all we remember the revolutionary mass bases that, regardless of danger, tried every way to shelter and protect us so we could operate day and night.”

It was in this affectionate countryside that the farmers, together with the communist soldiers, witnessed each step of the revolution's growth: "During the period of vigorous activities of the Revolutionary Youth Association, as well as the period when this organization was terrorized by the enemy, the revolutionary masses were always by our side, sharing the sweet and the bitter. That is why, although the enemy tried every way to destroy the roots of the revolution, they were still unable to carry out their plot."

The events of the Thanh Hoa Provincial Party Committee Founding Conference on July 29, 1930 were recreated in memories and recollections: In the house of comrade Le Van Sy, in Yen Truong village (Tho Lap commune), when the new moon had just set, the solemn Provincial Party Committee Founding Conference took place: “The atmosphere was quiet... The delegates sat together on a bed and a bamboo cot placed close together. In the middle was a set of water utensils and a bright enough oil lamp. The whole hall waited in silence.” Comrade Chap, on behalf of his superiors, delivered the opening speech at the conference, emphasizing the reason, scale and significance of the establishment of the Thanh Hoa Provincial Party Committee: “This is an event of great significance to the revolutionary movement of our province. All comrades, please remember today, the work we will discuss so that from now on each comrade can further promote his assigned activities to contribute to the movement in the province to develop more deeply and widely among the masses and bring the Party's struggle to a new level.”

Amidst the shortage of all kinds of conditions, the constant danger, the revolutionary practice in the locality and the whole country had many fluctuations, but thanks to the careful and meticulous preparation, together with the spirit of solidarity and high consensus of the delegates, the Conference to establish the Thanh Hoa Provincial Party Committee was a great success: "The whole conference almost held its breath to follow every opinion of the superior cadres. Looking at everyone's faces, we saw a radiant expression full of honor for the glorious revolutionary cause of the Party".

After the conference in Yen Truong, the revolutionary movement in the province was increasingly developed and strengthened. Along with the growth of the organization, the fighting activities under the leadership of the Provincial Party Committee also became stronger and stronger, like a smoldering furnace that would burst out and burn the class enemy when conditions allowed. “The revolutionary seeds, through the storms, nurtured by the masses, still sprouted and blossomed, becoming stronger and stronger... From the members of the Revolutionary Youth Association, we were admitted to the Communist Party. We also had a Party cell as the nucleus of the revolutionary struggle movement of the masses. From the masses, and from the revolutionary struggle movement of the masses, we grew day by day. The Party organization also continued to develop through that.” The confidences and confessions of the veteran revolutionaries at that time are still relevant today, a valuable lesson for the development of the Thanh Hoa Provincial Party Committee in all periods.

The memoirs of veteran comrades - the "red seeds" of Thanh Hoa's revolution such as Nguyen Doan Chap, Le Oanh Kieu,... further depicted a revolutionary journey full of difficulties, hardships but also glorious. From here, Thanh Hoa had a working class party to gather, lead, and bring the revolutionary movement of the homeland into harmony with the revolutionary flow of the nation.

Turning back the pages of memoirs of loyal revolutionary soldiers, people who left a deep impression, with great contributions during the period of mobilizing and establishing the Thanh Hoa Provincial Party Committee, to understand and appreciate more a loyal, heroic generation who "lived with the Party, died without leaving the Party", to appreciate more the value of independence and freedom and to see more clearly their responsibilities on the journey of building and developing the country.

Article and photos: Thao Linh

Source: https://baothanhhoa.vn/doi-cach-mang-tu-khi-toi-da-hieu-255357.htm