However, from theory to practice, our country's achievements over the past years show that moving towards socialism is inevitable for mankind and is the completely correct path for our country, our people, and the future is wide open.

Why does capitalism try so hard to deny the path to socialism?

The collapse of the socialist model in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union caused the world revolution to decline, and anti-communist forces and political opportunists took advantage of the opportunity to distort, sabotage, and deny socialism. Even among the communists themselves, there were many people who were skeptical, pessimistic, wavering, and doubted the scientific correctness and feasibility of socialism. Many even echoed hostile arguments, trying to attack and reject socialism, praising capitalism, advocating capitalism, and using examples from rich capitalist countries to attribute to the ultimate values ​​that humanity must strive for.

One of the most insidious and dangerous arguments that strongly impacts the political awareness, ideology, and feelings of cadres, party members, and the people is the argument that: The path to socialism is uncertain and unreal. Many people look at the material conditions and development level of developed capitalist countries to mistakenly believe that: Capitalism is a superior social regime, the goal that humanity strives for. At the same time, they try to criticize and deny socialism, thereby claiming that the path to socialism in Vietnam is just a pipe dream, lacking in reality.

Why do capitalism and hostile forces fiercely oppose socialism and firmly assert that the path to socialism is uncertain? It is because the path to socialism and the goals of socialist revolution are threatening the survival of capitalism. It is because the path to socialism is becoming increasingly clear and increasingly affirming its realistic value.

Illustration. Source: internet

In fact, many capitalist countries have developed to a high level and are continuing to develop. However, that is only a one-sided view of the results of capitalism at the present time. Let's go back to the history of the birth of capitalism. Right from the first step in the stage of primitive accumulation of capital, the bourgeoisie has left its mark on human history with streams of blood and tears. The bourgeoisie in Western capitalist countries has tried to plunder the wealth, exploit the labor, and plunder the resources of the colonies and workers in the mother country to serve the purpose of unlimited enrichment. The gap between rich and poor in capitalist society is increasingly widening, growing and can never be filled. V. Lenin affirmed that the political nature of capitalism is rotten and reactionary; imperialism is a companion of war; as long as there is imperialism, there is still the danger of war. Obviously, up to now, that argument not only remains valid but also deepens the nature of contemporary capitalism.

It was the British scholar Terry Eagleton, in his work “Why Marx was right”, who had to bitterly admit: “Modern capitalist countries are the result of a history of slavery, genocide, violence and disgusting exploitation”.

Today, capitalist countries continue to wage war, conflict, impose tyranny, impose capitalist democratic values ​​on the whole world, to spread pain, inequality, oppression and exploitation to the proletariat, working people, and other countries and consider it a natural value.

Coffee harvest in Lam Dong. Illustration photo: VNA

The road to socialism has a realistic destination.

There is a scientific basis to affirm with certainty that: The path to socialism in the world in general, and in Vietnam in particular, is not at all unrealistic and uncertain as capitalism and hostile forces have distorted. On the contrary, it is convincingly and vividly demonstrated in both theory and practice.

First of all, socialism is the inevitable movement of history. With two great discoveries, the theory of surplus value and historical materialism, C. Marx convincingly explained the movement and development of human society. Based on the internal laws of movement of society, especially the law of production relations consistent with the level of productive forces and the law of the dialectical relationship between the infrastructure and the superstructure, C. Marx came to the assertion: "The development of socio-economic forms is a natural historical process".

Here, C. Marx and F. Engels developed socialism from utopia to science when they argued it from the law of motion of history such as the inevitable movement of economic laws and social laws formed within capitalism. Thus, the objective dialectic of history is the constant development of socio-economic forms. Accordingly, the socialist socio-economic form will inevitably replace the capitalist socio-economic form. The path forward for humanity is nothing other than communism, the lower stage of which is socialism. That is the inevitability of history, not the illusion or self-justification of communists.

Second, the goal of socialism is not far-fetched but very specific. That is to abolish the regime of man exploiting man, abolish class division, and build an equal, free, and happy society. In socialism, there is a very fundamental difference compared to all previous modes of production, which lies in the goal or the path to reach it. In previous societies, it was only the replacement of one mode of production with another through a social revolution. However, that was only the replacement of one ruling class with another, the working masses were still the ruled class, still being exploited in one way or another. Socialism is a society built towards the goal of class liberation, human liberation, and the complete elimination of the regime of man exploiting man.

V. Lenin pointed out the inevitable trend of the times is the transition to socialism all over the world with the very specific goal of successfully building socialism. However, in each country and nation, different paths, methods and measures are chosen. Each country must rely on its specific situation to shape a suitable path to socialism. Depending on the thinking, awareness and organization and implementation methods of each Communist Party and each country, there will be different lengths and shortnesses on the road to the destination.

President Ho Chi Minh pointed out that: "Socialism aims to improve the material and cultural life of the people and is built by the people themselves."

Third, socialism is a social regime that has been realized in reality, qualitatively different from previous social regimes.

From the Marxist doctrine of scientific socialism, the victory of the Russian October Revolution turned socialism into reality with the full shape of a future society: liberating the proletariat from the oppression and exploitation of the bourgeoisie; liberating the peasantry from the shackles of feudal landlords... The achievements in the transitional period to socialism in Vietnam and China show that the path to socialism is completely realistic, aiming at building a new society better than the old one, not a utopia.

Fourth, socialism is being comprehensively built in terms of economy, politics, culture and society in Vietnam. This is a vivid and concrete demonstration of a model of socialism defined through 8 basic characteristics of goals; level of productive forces; production relations; culture; people, socialist rule of law state... These 8 characteristics are a generalization of the model of socialism, it does not stop at strategy, in resolutions but is realized in political, economic, cultural and social life. A very specific manifestation of socialist democracy is "People know, people discuss, people do, people check, people supervise, people benefit". That is a clear and convincing demonstration of the realization of the connotation of the path to socialism. Because after all, the value of the socialist revolution is crystallized in what the people control and what they enjoy. And this also affirms the difference in nature between the socialist regime and the capitalist regime.

General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong affirmed: The society we are building is a society in which all development is truly for the people, not for profit that tramples on human dignity; it is also a society of humanity, solidarity, mutual support, aiming for progressive and humane values, not for the selfish interests of a few individuals and groups. Our Party and State, our entire people strive to build a political system in which power truly belongs to the people, by the people and serves the interests of the people, not just for a wealthy minority.

Obviously, the good values ​​we are building are not far-fetched or unrealistic, but on the contrary, they are the true values ​​of socialism, which we can completely establish, build and realize. That also affirms that the path to socialism is not uncertain as many bad people spread, but is a realistic path, with a specific destination that we have the right to choose, the right to strive, steadfastly, persistently implement and the right to believe that socialism will be successfully built in Vietnam. However, socialism is not something that is ready-made, it must be shaped in terms of goals and methods of construction, it must be fought, established and created by the hands, minds and strong political determination of communists and workers.

Dr. PHUNG MANH CUONG and Master HOANG ANH TUAN (Academy of Politics)