Propaganda, ideological and theoretical preparation for the birth of communist organizations
In November 1924, after more than a year in the Soviet Union, Nguyen Ai Quoc was sent by the Eastern Department of the Communist International to Guangzhou - the center of the Chinese democratic revolutionary movement. With the help of the Soviet Consulate and the Chinese Communist Party, in June 1925, Nguyen Ai Quoc selected outstanding people to train, educate, and establish the Vietnam Revolutionary Youth Association.
At the same time, leader Nguyen Ai Quoc affirmed that the first practical step towards establishing a political organization as desired was to immediately establish a newspaper as a mouthpiece with the task of collective propaganda. Without a newspaper, it would be impossible to convey policies and viewpoints to grassroots organizations and members, especially in conditions of secret operations. More importantly, that newspaper, as V. Lenin said, "will be like a part of a giant forge that will fan every spark of the class struggle and of the anger among the people into a big fire."
Vietnam Journalism Museum - where publications and relics of Vietnam's journalism are preserved. Photo: VOV
And the newspaper with the historic mission of “fanning anger into a great fire” was named Thanh Nien. On June 21, 1925, after a period of preparation by Nguyen Ai Quoc, the first issue of the weekly Thanh Nien was published.
The basic political content of Thanh Nien Newspaper is: Clearly pointing out the contradiction between our nation and the colonial nations with imperialism as irreconcilable; Affirming the path of the Vietnamese revolution; The revolutionary force is the entire people, with workers and peasants as the foundation; Revolutionaries must sacrifice for the cause and must have the right revolutionary method; The Communist Party must lead and organize the revolutionary masses; The Vietnamese revolution must follow the path of the Russian October Revolution to achieve victory. In the issues, most of the articles have the purpose of deepening hatred for the invaders, stimulating the spirit of national independence and patriotism to encourage the people to rise up and make revolution.
The newspaper was secretly circulated in the branches of the Vietnam Revolutionary Youth Association, among those who sympathized with the Association, and in the revolutionary bases of overseas Vietnamese in France, Thailand, and China. In Vietnam, the Thanh Nien Newspaper was hand-copied into many copies by the revolutionary bases and then passed around for their comrades to read and convey to the people.
The Vietnam Revolutionary Youth Association in the country also used the newspaper to mobilize, propagate, enlighten and train members. With only 88 issues, Thanh Nien Newspaper had completed its historical mission: becoming a compass for patriotic Vietnamese youth in this period, truly fulfilling its mission of "being a mouthpiece with the task of collective propaganda".
And from Thanh Nien, the Revolutionary Press was opened, integrated into the flow of national history, contributing to bringing patriotism into the Vietnamese people, especially the youth, following the trend of the proletarian revolution, especially actively propagating, preparing ideologically, theoretically and organizationally for the birth of communist groups at the end of 1929 and the establishment of the Communist Party of Vietnam in early 1930. For example, in June 1929, the Indochinese Communist Party was born, deciding to publish the Hammer and Sickle Newspaper as the Central organ of the Party; the Central Committee of the Party published the Red Labor Union newspaper, the General Labor Union of Tonkin published the Labor newspaper... In September 1929, the An Nam Communist Party cell in Shanghai published the Red Newspaper...
The Rice Branch Newspaper, the Central Region Party Committee agency of the Indochinese Communist Party, was edited in Hue and published in Hanoi, nationwide and in France. Photo: Document
According to incomplete documents, from the Thanh Nien newspaper to the end of 1929, there were over 50 newspapers and magazines of the Youth Association, the Indochinese Communist Party and the Annam Communist Party. Some newspapers published about 200 issues (no exact number) such as Thanh Nien; some published dozens of issues, or even a few issues. Regardless of the time of publication, some were more or less, it can be said that the newspapers of these early Communist organizations played a very important role in educating the working masses about class consciousness, class struggle and communist ideals. Above all, as mentioned, it was the ideological preparation for the birth of the Communist Party of Vietnam.
Carry out the work of unifying the ideology and behavior of the entire Party
The principles and purposes of Tranh Dau - the Central organ of the Party - were also the goals of revolutionary newspapers in the period 1930 - 1936. In the spring of 1930, the Communist Party of Vietnam was born, on the basis of merging three communist organizations under the chairmanship of Nguyen Ai Quoc.
The conference to unify communist organizations, to establish the Communist Party of Vietnam in early 1930, passed a resolution on the press stating: 1. Abolish the newspapers previously published by the Indochinese Communist Party and the Annamese Communist Party; 2. The Central Committee may publish one theoretical magazine and three propaganda newspapers; 3. Abolish the newspapers of mass organizations directed by the Party; 4. Maintain all newspapers advocated by the masses. Regarding press organization, because of the Party's unification, the press of the previous communist organization system all stopped publishing, to follow a unified direction of the Communist Party.
The birth of the Communist Party of Vietnam has a decisive significance for the history of the nation as well as the direction of the Revolutionary Press. From here, the Party's press has developed richly, both in terms of newspaper names, organized by the Central Committee and Party committees at all levels, and Party cells; serving many subjects in need of propaganda, agitation and organization.
On August 5, 1930, the Red Magazine, the Central organ of the Communist Party of Vietnam, published its first issue. On August 15, 1930, the Fighting Newspaper, the Central organ of the Party, published its first issue. After the first Central Conference in October 1930, the Communist Party of Vietnam changed its name to the Indochinese Communist Party, and the Red Magazine and Fighting stopped publishing. The Central Committee of the Indochinese Communist Party published the Proletarian Flag Newspaper, No. 1, on January 1, 1931, and the Communist Magazine, No. 1, on February 11, 1931, under the direct supervision of General Secretary Tran Phu.
Also during this period, the Party's Overseas Leadership Committee was established as a temporary task of the Central Committee, publishing the Bolshevik magazine as a theoretical organ for Party unification. In June 1934, the Bolshevik magazine published its first issue and then, from March 1935, the magazine became the theoretical organ of the Indochinese Communist Party.
Journalists Truong Chinh, Tran Huy Lieu, Tran Dinh Long... at the headquarters of Tin Tuc newspaper in Hanoi, 1938 (left photo) and Le Travail newspaper issue dated November 6, 1936. Source: Vietnam National Museum of History
The regional and provincial committees, many district committees and Party cells also published newspapers but then stopped publishing continuously along with the enemy's sabotage of the regional committees, such as the Red Flag (1932), Leadership Flag (1933), Liberation (1935) of the South, Tien Len (1931), Red Flag of the North, Workers and Farmers (1931), Red Flag of the Central region. Besides that, there was a system of provincial and inter-provincial committee newspapers, district newspapers, especially in Nghe An and Ha Tinh regions.
The press during this period played an important role in launching the revolutionary movement of workers and peasants against imperialism and feudalism, culminating in the Nghe Tinh Soviet movement. In total, from 1930 to mid-1936, there were over 160 newspapers and magazines from the Central and local levels.
A special feature of the Revolutionary Press in the period 1930-1936 was the birth of the "prison press" - a phenomenon that appeared for the first time in the history of journalism - when a number of prisons and party cells advocated publishing newspapers to train the ideology and improve the theoretical and political level of cadres and party members in prison. In Hoa Lo, Hanoi, there were The Main Road, Lao Tu Tap Chi (later changed to Tu Nhan Bao), Bon So Vich, Tap Chi Cong San. In Con Lon, there were Nguoi Tu Do, Nghi Nghi Chung. In Quang Nam prison, there was Mo Nha Jail (later changed to Vat Com Bi). In Buon Ma Thuot prison, there was Doan De Tap Chi (later changed to Bon So Vich)...
Raising revolutionary awareness and equipping the entire Party and People with ideological weapons
Taking advantage of favorable international conditions, the Anti-Fascist People's Front was established in many countries, including France, and formed the World Anti-Fascist People's Front. Taking advantage of the ability to operate half legally, half illegally, during the period of the democratic movement (1936 - 1939), the Indochinese Communist Party advocated openly publishing books and newspapers to propagate the revolution.
Newspapers of the Party, the Democratic Front and mass organizations were born in most provinces and cities in the country to propagate Marxism-Leninism and raise revolutionary awareness among the masses. The new edition of Hon Tre can be said to be a pioneering publication, paving the way for the press of the Party and revolutionary mass organizations to publish openly, legally and semi-legally during the period of democratic movements, directly bringing the voices of communists through the press to the masses.
Exhibition "Vietnamese Revolutionary Journalism 1925-2024: 99 professional stories". Photo: Nam Nguyen
On September 1, 1939, Nazi Germany invaded Poland, World War II began, and the period of fighting for democracy ended. The authorities brutally abolished reforms, implemented fascist policies toward the press, suppressed progressive press, and terrorized democratic and revolutionary journalists. Our Party was forced to go underground, change its strategic direction, and change its tactics to suit the war situation and carry out the national liberation revolution. The press policy of the Indochinese Communist Party also changed accordingly. Revolutionary journalists switched from public to secret activities.
“The essential thing is to publish secret newspapers” to equip the entire Party and the People with ideological weapons. In order to carry out the Central Party’s directive, the Revolutionary Press still strived to prove its role. Among the typical revolutionary newspapers of this period, we cannot fail to mention Dan Chung Newspaper, the Central organ of the Indochinese Communist Party, issue 41, published on January 3, 1939. The newspaper was founded by General Secretary Nguyen Van Cu; Le Travail (Labor) Newspaper, a political and economic weekly published every Wednesday in French in Hanoi, issue 6, dated October 21, 1936; Tin Tuc Newspaper, a weekly newspaper, the organ of the Indochinese Democratic Front, issue 36, published on September 24, 1938; Lao Dong Newspaper, the organ defending the interests of the working class, issue 20, published on July 14, 1939…
Promote the revolutionary movement, pave the way for the victory of the General Uprising
The Revolutionary Press of the period 1939-1945 is also known as the press of the high tide of national salvation because it clearly reflected the high tide of revolutionary spirit in preparation for the General Uprising. The peak of the Revolutionary Press of this period was the period after the 8th Central Conference (May 1941). In early 1941, comrade Nguyen Ai Quoc secretly returned to the country after 30 years of going abroad to find a way to save the country.
In May 1941, on behalf of the Communist International, Nguyen Ai Quoc chaired the 8th Conference of the Party Central Committee. The Conference decided on many important issues such as: Establishing the Vietnam Independence League (abbreviated as Viet Minh); temporarily shelving the slogan: "Confiscate land from landlords and distribute it to peasants" ; proposing the policy of confiscating land from imperialists and traitors and distributing it to poor peasants; reducing rent and interest, redistributing public land, moving towards the implementation of land for peasants; advocating solving the national problem within the framework of each country in Indochina; establishing, developing and strengthening the leadership of armed and semi-armed organizations; preparing for armed uprisings, moving from partial uprisings to a general uprising to seize power throughout the country.
After the Conference, Nguyen Ai Quoc published Vietnam Doc Lap (1941) of the Cao Bang Viet Minh Provincial Committee. In September 1941, the Party Central Committee decided to publish the Communist Magazine, and General Secretary Truong Chinh was assigned to directly build the magazine. On January 25, 1942, comrade Truong Chinh published the Cuu Quoc newspaper, the organ of the Viet Minh General Committee. On October 10, 1942, he published the Liberation Flag newspaper, the propaganda and agitation agency of the Central Committee of the Indochinese Communist Party. On February 28, 1943, he published the Communist Magazine, the theoretical agency of the Central Executive Committee of the Indochinese Communist Party. Of these, the two newspapers that contributed the most to the organization and leadership of the victorious August Revolution in 1945 were Liberation Flag and Cuu Quoc.
At the provincial level, in addition to the Independent Vietnam newspaper of the Viet Minh Provincial Committee of Cao Bang, Cao Bang - Bac Can, Cao - Bac - Lang. Other provinces, such as Hung Yen had the Bai Say newspaper, Quang Ngai had the Independent Chon newspaper, Thanh Hoa had the Duoi Giac Nuoc newspaper, Bac Ninh had the Hiep Luc newspaper, Ninh Binh had the Hoa Lu newspaper, Phuc Yen had the Me Linh newspaper, Bac Giang had the Quyet Thang newspaper, the Hoa - Ninh - Thanh War Zone (Hoa Binh - Ninh Binh - Thanh Hoa) had the Khoi Nghia newspaper, especially the Bac Son area had the Bac Son newspaper... Besides that, there were newspapers of national salvation organizations such as the Chien Dau newspaper of the Vietnam National Salvation Army, later changed to the Vietnam Liberation Army newspaper, the Vanguard newspaper of the National Salvation Culture Association, the Vietnam of the Vietnam National Salvation Association...
Prison journalism still developed, typically Suoi reo newspaper in Son La prison, Binh minh tren song da in Hoa Binh prison, etc. Notably, during this period, for the first time in the patriotic movement in ethnic minority areas, there was a separate newspaper in ethnic script: Lac Muong newspaper, the propaganda and agitation agency of the Thai National Salvation Association.
During the preparation period for the August 1945 General Uprising, despite the extremely difficult circumstances of secret operations, a series of revolutionary newspapers reached the masses, promoted patriotism, launched a national salvation movement, gathered forces, and made an important contribution to the victory of our nation.
The rich development of the press under the leadership of the Party has created a widespread influence of the Party on the masses, strengthened the position of the Party in the revolutionary struggle, and contributed to the success of the Party in leading the Vietnamese revolution. The press has truly been a revolutionary proclamation, encouraging the People to rise up and fight to regain independence and freedom for the nation and for themselves.
Ha Anh
Source: https://www.congluan.vn/khi-bai-bao-la-to-hich-cach-mang-post299554.html
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