Loyalty in prison
In October 1930, as Secretary of the Charner Party Cell (under the Saigon Party Committee), comrade Nguyen Trac promoted propaganda, mobilization and enlightenment work for workers.
He directly led the struggle of Charner factory workers to demand improved living conditions and an 8-hour working day on January 21, 1931.
Suspecting that Nguyen Trac was the leader in organizing the distribution of leaflets and posting of banners in the company, the owner of Charner Company arrested Nguyen Trac right at his workplace and took him to the Catinat Secret Service. Here, the secret police continuously interrogated him but he refused to confess; they took him to the Big Prison (Saigon).
After more than 2 years of imprisonment and torture, the enemy could not subdue Nguyen Trac's fighting spirit and in early May 1933, they held a special trial and sentenced him to 10 years of confinement for plotting to overthrow the government, exiled him to Con Dao. In Con Dao, he organized many struggles against the harsh prison regime and was appointed Secretary of a Party cell in Con Dao prison.
As Party cell secretary, comrade Nguyen Trac actively gathered political prisoners, propagated, mobilized and helped them realize that revolutionary struggle was correct and necessary.
Despite being brutally suppressed by the prison guards, the struggles continued and achieved great results. With his ability to organize and his political thinking, comrade Nguyen Trac was trusted by his comrades and assigned to participate in the public activities department at Con Dao prison. In that position, comrade Nguyen Trac had more conditions to operate and organize the movement.
Closely follow the movement
In July 1936, the Popular Front took power in France and campaigned for a number of reforms, including some progressive policies. Among them was the “amnesty of political prisoners”. Nguyen Trac and many other comrades in Con Dao prison were released.
Returning to Quang Nam, he linked up with comrades Trinh Quang Xuan and Tran Hoc Gioi to establish the Quang Nam Committee for the Indochina Congress.
After the Indochina Congress took place in Hue in September 1936, Party delegates in several Central provinces held secret meetings in Hue to discuss revolutionary tasks and elect the Central Provisional Regional Party Committee.
With sharp political thinking, especially as someone who had struggled with the workers' movement in Saigon and remained steadfast in colonial and imperialist prisons, comrade Nguyen Trac was trusted to be elected to the Regional Party Committee and was assigned to be the Secretary of the Quang Nam Provincial Party Committee.
On that basis, at the end of 1936, in Tan Hanh village, Hoa Vang, he convened a conference to disseminate the Central Committee's resolution and listen to delegates report on the situation of party organizations and mass organizations in their localities.
The conference decided to establish a provisional Provincial Party Committee, and comrade Nguyen Trac was elected to hold the position of Secretary. After the conference, the Provincial Party Committee comrades in charge of the prefectures and districts helped the localities develop more party bases, expand disguised activities, establish Prefectural Party Committees and District Party Committees, and move the movement forward.
As Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee, comrade Nguyen Trac went down to the grassroots to build revolutionary movements, develop party members and establish party organizations.
Along with the development of the Party organization and Party members, he directed the establishment of many trade unions and friendship associations in Da Nang, Hoi An and several other localities, which were successively established to gather brothers and sisters to participate in public and democratic struggles under the leadership of the Party, such as the Da Nang Tailor Friendship Association, the Da Nang Porters Association, etc.
Implementing the policy of continuing to oppose taxes of the Central Region Provisional Party Committee, in October 1938, comrade Nguyen Trac chaired a Provincial Party Committee conference to unify the form of petition, collect widespread signatures in prefectures and districts and send it to the Central Region House of Representatives for intervention.
In Dien Ban, comrade Nguyen Trac attended mass rallies condemning the tax increase project, but in the same meeting, some local officials were afraid to speak up when meeting the Consul and the Governor General to demand tax reduction.
Seeing this, he stood up to question the Ambassador in French, condemning the tax increase that had made him lose face. After this event, comrade Nguyen Trac was arrested by the enemy and imprisoned in Hoi An prison, then exiled to Quy Nhon and Buon Ma Thuot prisons.
Political Director of Dan Newspaper
After its re-establishment, the Central Region Party Committee urgently sent its own people and secretly mobilized a number of progressive representatives "in the social group" of the Central Region House of Representatives to apply for permission to publish a new newspaper called Dan.
To maintain its legitimacy, Dan newspaper used the names of progressive congressmen and influential “social group” activists in the Central Vietnam House of Representatives. Under the guise of a freelance “journalist” in Hue, comrade Nguyen Trac was appointed Political Director of Dan newspaper. Editor-in-Chief was Nguyen Dan Que; Secretary, Manager and Editor-in-Chief was Nguyen Xuan Cac.
On the newspaper's cuff, the words: Dan - "The agency uniting all progressive forces in the country". From number 1 to number 17 on the Dan newspaper's cuff, it reads: Political Director (Directeur politique): Nguyen Trac.
According to journalist Duong Phuoc Thu - former Permanent Vice President of Thua Thien Hue Journalists Association: "Dan Newspaper published its first issue on July 6, 1938, with an initial circulation of 5,000 copies, sometimes up to 8,000 copies per issue, distributed nationwide, but the largest number was still in the Central region and in the capital Hue.
The content of the issues was both revolutionary and propagating communist views and ideas, and market-oriented, meeting the diverse needs of readers. Fearing the widespread influence of Dan newspaper, the French colonialists and the Southern Dynasty sought ways to deal with it. On October 7, 1938, the Southern Dynasty and Protectorate authorities used the excuse of imposing “false news” to ban publication and close the editorial office when the newspaper reached issue 17. Nguyen Dan Que and Nguyen Xuan Cac were arrested, while Nguyen Trac was arrested in his hometown two months later.
With more than 60 years of dedicated service to the revolutionary cause, Comrade Nguyen Trac has been awarded by the Party and the State with noble titles: 50 and 40 years of Party membership badges; Ho Chi Minh Medal, First Class Independence Medal and many other awards. In particular, with his enormous contributions to the revolutionary cause of the Party, Comrade Nguyen Trac was honored to be one of three natives of Quang Nam - along with Acting President Huynh Thuc Khang and Chairman of the State Council Vo Chi Cong - to be awarded the Gold Star Medal by the Party and the State, the highest award of the State (posthumously awarded in 2013).
Source: https://baoquangnam.vn/ky-niem-120-nam-ngay-sinh-dong-chi-nguyen-trac-nguyen-bi-thu-tinh-uy-quang-nam-4-11-1904-4-11-2024-nhung-dau-an-khong-phai-3143714.html
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