Promoting the value of the People's Heart project

During his lifetime, he did not want any worship or personal veneration. Before passing away, in his Will, he advised: "After I pass away, do not organize a grand funeral to avoid wasting the people's time and money" ⁽¹⁾ . But in the hearts of every Vietnamese person, everyone wants to keep the image of Uncle Ho in their hearts, setting up an altar for him in their families. Uncle Ho followed the world of the virtuous at the very time of the fierce fire of the resistance war against America, that infinite sorrow became a strong motivation for the people of the whole country to stand up.

Deeply understanding and following the earnest wishes of the entire Party, the entire people and the entire army, the Politburo of the Party Central Committee decided: “With infinite love and eternal gratitude to President Ho, we must carry out to the best of our ability the task of preserving President Ho’s body and building his mausoleum” ⁽²⁾ . The Politburo’s decision fulfilled the wishes of all Vietnamese people to see Uncle Ho with their own eyes, to express their respect and eternal gratitude to him. Especially the people and soldiers of the South who were facing the enemy day and night without ever having met Uncle Ho. Friends from all over the world, whenever they come to Vietnam, also have the opportunity to visit the mausoleum to admire Uncle Ho - an outstanding soldier of the national liberation movement, the international communist and workers’ movement.

The design and preparation for the construction of the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum were carried out urgently from the beginning of 1970. On September 2, 1973, the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum began construction. The Ministry of National Defense and the Ministry of Architecture were assigned as the main and core forces in the construction process. The Party, State and people of the Soviet Union sent talented experts to Vietnam to help us build the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, considering helping Vietnam as the duty and noble international sentiment of communists. On August 29, 1975, just over two years after the start of construction and over three months after the South was completely liberated, the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum was solemnly inaugurated.

President Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum is a historical monument of the 20th century, a work of friendship between Vietnam and the Soviet Union (now the Russian Federation); a work of “People’s will and Party’s will”; of the spirit of national solidarity. A great wonder, a work of great historical, cultural and political value not because of its grandeur and splendor but because it preserves and promotes the ideology, morality and style of a man who has entered the history books of the nation and humanity in the world, a symbol and belief of the Vietnamese people.

It has been nearly 54 years since President Ho Chi Minh left us and 48 years since the inauguration of his Mausoleum, the stream of people visiting the Mausoleum is still endless. With the approval of the Prime Minister, since May 19, 2001, the daily flag-raising ceremony has been solemnly held in front of President Ho Chi Minh's Mausoleum. The image of the Fatherland and the leader are blended together, further enhancing the cultural, spiritual and political value of the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum.

Since the opening of the Mausoleum on August 29, 1975, the unit has welcomed and served attentively and safely nearly 70 million people, including more than 10 million international visitors coming to visit President Ho Chi Minh; thousands of important activities of the Party and State; rallies, parades, and marches celebrating major national holidays; political, cultural, artistic, and ideological education activities of political organizations and unions... to educate the tradition of patriotism, "When drinking water, remember its source"; about the life and great revolutionary career of President Ho Chi Minh, spreading Ho Chi Minh's ideology, morality, and style to all people and international friends.

Every time we visit Uncle Ho's Mausoleum, before his spirit, each of us always feels the expertise, emotion, deep gratitude, and immense respect for Uncle Ho and remembers his teachings, determined to strive, make efforts, overcome all difficulties, and vow to study and follow his ideology, morality, and style, and follow the path that Uncle Ho chose. Especially, with the Vietnam People's Army, shouldering the great responsibility of being loved by the Party, the State, and the people, and entrusted by Uncle Ho, each cadre, employee, and soldier is united, determined, and vows to devote themselves to the independence and freedom of the Fatherland, absolutely loyal to the revolutionary cause that the Party and Uncle Ho chose, contributing to building a prosperous, beautiful country, where the people are warm, well-off, and happy, worthy of the title of Uncle Ho's Soldiers.

In carrying out the special political task: Long-term preservation, absolute safety protection of Uncle Ho's body and promotion of the political and cultural significance of the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum Management Board and the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum Protection Command have a particularly important meaning, always receiving close leadership and direction from the leaders of the Party, the State, the Central Military Commission, and the Ministry of National Defense. Over the years, generations of cadres, soldiers, employees, civil servants, public employees, and workers of the Mausoleum Management Board and the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum Protection Command have always strived to step by step firmly master the special political task, successfully and excellently completing the assigned tasks. Building a strong and clean Party organization, a comprehensively strong agency and unit that is "exemplary and typical" worthy of the trust and love of the entire Party, the entire people, and the entire army for cadres, soldiers, employees, civil servants, public employees, and workers at Uncle Ho's Mausoleum.

Major General DINH QUOC HUNG, Secretary of the Party Committee of Group 969,

Political Commissar of the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum Protection Command

_{(1) Ho Chi Minh Complete Works, volume 15, National Political Publishing House - Truth, Hanoi, 2011, p.615}

_{(2) Communist Party of Vietnam, Complete Party Documents, volume 30, National Political Publishing House - Truth, Hanoi, 2011, p.281}

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