Hanoi boys and girls are 'as beautiful as roses, harder than steel'

Holding my hand as we walked along the cold, dark corridor of Hoa Lo Prison Relic, Ms. Do Hong Phan (born in 1933), former Director of the Department of International Cooperation, Ministry of Irrigation (now the General Department of Irrigation, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development) emotionally recalled the days of seething revolutionary fighting spirit of the capital's youth.

At that time, Ms. Phan was a female student at Chu Van An National High School (now Chu Van An High School) but was assigned by the City Youth Union to be the Secretary of the Youth Union of Resistance Students at Trung Vuong School (now Trung Vuong High School) because the school only had a basic level and the students were still young.

vna_potal_69_year_of_liberation_the_red_river_rolled_over_the_river_7014025.jpeg — Ms. Do Hong Phan looks back at documentary images from the vibrant revolutionary period. (Photo: VNA)

“Every family in Hanoi had at least 1-2 young people participating in the resistance war, either male or female, in one way or another. Hanoi girls at that time were mainly young ladies from noble families, but they were always ready to fight side by side with their male friends on the entire resistance front, protecting every inch of the capital, passionate and heroic but also full of hardship and danger,” Ms. Phan said.

Four female students sing the song "Truong Ca Song Lo" by musician Van Cao at the Opera House in 1950, Ms. Do Hong Phan stands on the far left. (Photo: NVCC)

Recalling the early days of participating in the revolutionary movement, from late 1949 to early 1950, she said those were the most exciting days of her life.

At the age of 16-17, patriotic teenagers participated in stirring up student movements, distributing leaflets, going on strike, writing articles...

“During my activities, I was enriched with knowledge about the Party and the movement of the proletariat… In early June 1950, I learned that I would be admitted to the Party. According to the regulations, I was not old enough, but due to special circumstances in the enemy’s rear, I was admitted at the age of sixteen and a half,” Ms. Phan recalled.

Among the things her superiors told her, Ms. Phan remembered the saying most: "In enemy territory, it is very possible that at some point you will be captured and tortured by the enemy, but as a Party member, you must resolutely maintain your integrity and be ready to overcome all obstacles and challenges."

The admission ceremony was held in the warehouse of Ms. Nguyen Thi Dan, a base for women in the resistance at Dong Xuan market. The warehouse was filled with bales of fabric, enough to accommodate a small table, a few chairs, and on the wall was a hammer and sickle flag as big as two hands and a 4x6cm photo of President Ho Chi Minh.

That advice followed closely the revolutionary activities of Mrs. Phan later on.

At that time, not only did classmates of the same age join the resistance movement, but the revolutionary spirit from the older brothers and sisters also spread to the younger generations.

Mr. Nguyen Dinh Tan (born in 1936) joined the revolution following the example of his eldest brother, martyr Nguyen Sy Van.

“In early 1948, Van entered Chu Van An School to continue his final year of junior high school (grade 4) to get his high school diploma while I was studying at Nguyen Trai Junior High School, not knowing that my brother had participated in the student movement against the French,” said Mr. Tan.

Portrait of Martyr Nguyen Sy Van. (Provided by family)

vna_potal_ha_noi_will_no longer_have_a_hot_winter_like_summer_1612_7131343.jpg — Mr. Nguyen Sy Van and his two friends, Nguyen Van Kham and Nguyen Trong Quang, swam to Turtle Tower to hang the national flag, making the people enthusiastic about the resistance. (Photo: VNA)

On the night of May 18, 1948, to celebrate President Ho Chi Minh's birthday, Mr. Nguyen Sy Van and his two friends, Nguyen Van Kham and Nguyen Trong Quang, swam to the Turtle Tower to hang the national flag. It was a daring act because they had to avoid the enemy's watchful eyes from the Hang Trong outpost (now the Hoan Kiem District Police Headquarters) near Hoan Kiem Lake.

The next morning, the enemy at both the Hang Trong outpost and the Governor's Palace (later demolished, now the location of the Hanoi People's Committee) discovered the flag. They immediately went out and pulled it down, but the people spread the word that "Viet Minh hung the flag at Turtle Tower."

“This action caused a great stir. The red flag with yellow star fluttered in the middle of Hoan Kiem Lake, making the people excited and enthusiastic, turning towards the Resistance Government,” Mr. Tan said.

Mr. Nguyen Dinh Tan visits the exhibition at Hoa Lo Prison Relic. (Photo: Minh Thu/Vietnam+)

No one in his family knew what Mr. Van had done until May 25, 1948, when a car from the Second Bureau (the French Foreign Intelligence Service) came to his house and took Mr. Van away.

Initially, Mr. Van and Mr. Kham were taken to Cua Dong stone cellar for torture, then they were taken to Hoa Lo Prison, convicted, and exiled to Khe Tu, Tien Yen for hard labor. Since then, there has been no news of their family.

Only later did Mr. Tan learn that his brother escaped from prison but was captured by the enemy and tortured to death in Khe Tu prison camp, Tien Yen in 1948.

The example of his steadfast brother made Mr. Tan actively participate in the activities of the student movement in the capital. He and his friends at Chu Van An High School participated in performing arts, distributing leaflets, propagandizing, and going on strike to support the revolution and protest against the conscription of students into the army.

“
The struggle of resistance students in enemy territory was like an underground wave... the more difficult it was, the more we tried. The previous generation was oppressed and imprisoned, while the next generation went on strike, calling for freedom for students.
Mr. Nguyen Dinh Tan

“The struggle of students and resistance fighters in the enemy’s heartland was like an underground wave, causing Hanoi during the temporary occupation to be constantly in turmoil. The enemy was always in pain and tried to find ways to suppress the movement, but the more difficult it was, the more we tried. The previous generation was suppressed and imprisoned, while the next generation went on strike and called for the release of students,” said Mr. Tan.

As for Ms. Nguyen Hac Dam Thu (born in 1935), former Deputy Head of the International Department of the Vietnam Women's Union, she also became enlightened about the revolution early on, thanks to following the example of her family members, including her cousin Ms. Do Hong Phan.

Ms. Thu became one of the students who participated in writing for the Nhua Song newspaper (later Tien Phong newspaper) - one of the effective propaganda tools to organize youth and students to have practical activities, support the resistance, turn towards the revolution, towards Uncle Ho.

Ms. Nguyen Hac Dam Thu (born in 1935), former Deputy Head of the International Department of the Vietnam Women's Union. (Photo: NVCC)

In the early days, the Nhua Song newspaper was printed by hand: The newspaper was handwritten, lithographed with faint purple ink. From 1951-1952, the Nhua Song newspaper was printed using the new Ronéo technology on white paper, with a soft cover on the outside, looking no different from a student's notebook, very easy to hide in a bag.

Making and printing secret newspapers was already difficult, but publishing the Nhua Song newspaper was even more difficult.

With paper size as small as a book or a student notebook, after printing, the newspaper was put in a bag and brought to school. In addition to being distributed by youth organizations, many people took advantage of recess to secretly put the newspaper in their desk drawers, some gave it to some students to read and then carefully monitored their attitudes. If anyone quietly hid the newspaper in their bag and brought it home to read, they were sympathizers of the resistance.

Gradually, the Nhua Song newspaper helped the Resistance Student Union attract many sympathetic young people to join the organization. True to its name, Nhua Song is a newspaper that carries the spirit of students during the resistance period. It is the youthful energy, the enthusiasm and vitality of the twenties.

Recalling her days as a journalist, Ms. Thu confided: “Many people think that, living in Hanoi at that time, we were just young students who ‘ate for free’. In reality, we had to save every penny, spend very sparingly, to contribute to the newspaper. And it was Nhua Song that nurtured our faith and determination to overcome all the difficulties and challenges when Hanoi was temporarily occupied by the enemy.”

Sharing with reporters of VietnamPlus Electronic Newspaper, Ms. Thu said that because of the newspaper's influence, many students and resistance fighters in the capital were captured by the enemy, brutally tortured and imprisoned in Hoa Lo Prison; among them were Mr. Le Tam, Duong Linh, Le Van Ba, Duong Tu Minh, Nguyen Kim Khiem, Tran Khac Can, Ms. Do Hong Phan...

While this group was imprisoned, another group outside continued to rebuild the movement, so that the sap of life would continue to flow in the hearts of the youth who were enthusiastic about the revolution, nurturing the aspiration for the day the capital was liberated./.