Some features of the heroic Go Dau Local Army Company 33

During the resistance war against the American invaders, in Go Dau district, there was a local army unit that made the enemy terrified. Not only did it fight against sweeps, the unit also proactively attacked enemy posts and outposts, depleting the enemy's strength, contributing significantly to the liberation of Go Dau district in particular and the liberation of the South in general. That was Company 33 (C33) of the local army of Go Dau district.

After the liberation of the South, on January 20, 1976, the 33rd Company was honored by the state as “Hero of the People’s Armed Forces”. On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the liberation of the South, let’s go back in time to learn a little about this Heroic Company of the People’s Armed Forces.

Officers and soldiers of Company 33 of Go Dau local army and delegates attending the traditional meeting took souvenir photos.

Go Dau district was established by the revolutionary government in early 1955, on the basis of separating a part of the northern part of Trang Bang district. After 6 years of establishment, in early 1961, the superiors decided to merge Go Dau district into Trang Bang district. In March 1961, the armed forces unit of Trang Bang district (including Go Dau district) was established and took the code name C33 (Company 33).

When it was first established, C33 had only one platoon, with 33 officers and soldiers, commanded by comrade Nguyen Van Lan (9 Lan). The platoon was divided into 3 squads. Weapons were limited, with one machine gun and a few rifles. After only a short period of military and political training, the unit was ordered to go into combat.

On the night of March 18, 1961, C33 combined with the military base to attack the militia post at the Ven Ven intersection (Hiep Thanh commune). In this first battle, C33 destroyed the entire militia post and captured 18 guns.

On the morning of March 19, 1961, the unit and guerrillas from Hiep Thanh and Phuoc Thanh communes fought hand-to-hand with a main force company of the puppet 5th Division when they invaded Hiep Thanh commune. In this battle, we killed and wounded 60 enemies.

Building on the initial victories, in 1961, C33 continuously fought the enemy in more than 200 large and small battles, killing and injuring hundreds of enemies and capturing nearly 100 guns of various types. Along with fighting, C33 and guerrillas from communes infiltrated enemy areas to carry out armed propaganda work, mobilize people to destroy evil, break the grip; and build units that increasingly developed in quantity and quality, combat technical level and political level.

After nearly a year of merging, on November 10, 1961, under the direction of the superiors, Go Dau district was separated from Trang Bang district. Along with the separation of the two districts, the armed forces of the two districts were also reorganized to suit the new situation and tasks.

In November 1961, the common C33 unit of the two districts was also split into two units. The unit belonging to Go Dau district was named “Go Dau Local Army Company 33” (C33 Go Dau). The company also had only one platoon, with comrade Nguyen Van Vinh as Platoon Leader; comrade Nguyen Van Nua as Deputy Platoon Leader and comrade Dam Quoc Viet as Political Commissar.

After its establishment, the 33rd Division of Go Dau local troops and the people of the entire district fought the enemy continuously day and night. Especially, they attacked strategic hamlets, making it impossible for the enemy to stabilize their "pacification" plan in Go Dau. From then on, the C33 force grew stronger and together with the people of Go Dau fought bravely against the invaders.

Notably, there were two periods when the C33 unit fought fiercely with the enemy and won many victories. That was the period from 1964 to 1966, when the enemy carried out a plot to quickly pacify, encroach, and gather people to establish "strategic hamlets" and the period from 1967 to 1971, when the entire "gut area" of Go Dau was attacked by the enemy, creating a white belt, no people, and bare terrain.

In the period of 1964-1966, the enemy pushed the "Special War" to its peak, attacking us on a large and fierce scale. In early 1964, the enemy recaptured Suoi Ba Tuoi, isolated the area and established a "strategic hamlet" on Highway 19 (now DT.782) as a shield separating the Go Dau area from the Boi Loi base. In the Go Dau core area, the enemy increased its sweeps.

Faced with that situation, the Go Dau District Party Committee launched the movement “Determined to defend Go Dau”, with the determination to drive the enemy out of the communes in the Go Dau area, maintain the area, stick to the land, stick to the people, and fight the enemy. Thoroughly imbued with this spirit, each officer and soldier of the C33 force wore on their chests and pasted on their gun holsters the insignia “Determined to defend Go Dau”. From then on, the entire C33 was determined to fight, overcome all difficulties, stick to the area, stick to the people, and fight the enemy, and achieved many remarkable victories.

In the first 4 months of 1964, on Provincial Road 19, from Bau Don commune to Xom Soc crossroads (in Gia Binh and Gia Loc communes, Trang Bang district) and on National Highway 22 (now National Highway 22B), from Go Dau town to Cam Giang commune, C33, together with provincial forces, fought hundreds of large and small battles, destroyed and disintegrated 300 enemies, and captured many weapons of various types.

Also in 1964, C33 participated in two major battles that caused heavy defeats to the enemy. At around 4:00 p.m. on May 25, 1964, C33, along with the D14 force (Tay Ninh Battalion 14), raided the enemy formation stationed at Phuoc Tay hamlet (Phuoc Thanh commune). In this battle, we killed and wounded 60 enemies, and captured many weapons, including a 60mm mortar, a heavy machine gun, and a radio.

After this battle, the enemy abandoned Phuoc Tay outpost and moved to Phuoc Hoi hamlet. The second battle took place in September 1964. The C33 force, together with the 3rd Regiment of the main force of the Region, attacked two outposts of the puppet 5th Division in Phuoc Thanh and Hiep Thanh, killing 167 enemies.

In early 1965, the US used planes to bomb continuously for 25 days and nights and sprayed toxic chemicals at the bases of Boi Loi and Ben San... Notably, in April 1966, US soldiers swept into Thanh Duc base and were intercepted by C33 forces, who destroyed a platoon of 12 US soldiers. This was the first time C33 directly fought American invaders on Go Dau land.

During the 1968 Mau Than Spring General Offensive and Uprising, under the direction of the District Party Committee, the C33 force was tasked with attacking the enemy deep into Hieu Thien sub-region (Go Dau town), while simultaneously cutting off and interrupting sections of National Highway 1 (now National Highway 22) and National Highway 22 (now National Highway 22B).

Carrying out that mission, C33 and the provincial forces attacked Hieu Thien sub-region, killing 35 enemies, destroying a fuel depot, an ammunition depot and 2 105mm cannons. During the Mau Than Spring 1968 general offensive, we won a great victory. The revolutionary movement of the people in the district developed. Many families sent their children to join the army to fight the enemy. Thanks to that, C33 increased from 37 comrades to 118 comrades.

In 1968, C33 fought independently and coordinated with the above forces to fight many large and small battles, destroying hundreds of enemies and depleting their forces, including 20 tanks and shooting down 3 helicopters... After the general offensive and uprising in the Spring of Mau Than (1968), the enemy counterattacked fiercely.

Faced with that situation, C33 was determined to fight the enemy and persistently hold out, using the few to fight the many, with ingenuity and creativity. C33 fought independently and coordinated with the above forces to continuously fight the enemy, causing the US-puppet army to lose many battles in the Go Dau area. We broke many of the enemy's plots and plans...

From 1971 until the day the South was liberated, C33 continuously fought the enemy in sweeps. Notably, during the 12-day and night operation in 1974, C33, together with D14 of the province, surrounded Dat Moi post (Thanh Duc commune). During this operation, we fought 16 battles in total, destroying many enemy forces; destroying 10 tanks, completely destroying 2 armored companies, and capturing 77 guns from a security company.

In 1975, C33 and the guerrillas of the communes continuously blocked and destroyed many enemy forces. We surrounded the enemy posts. In April 1975, C33 and the people of the entire district rose up to attack the enemy, seized power, liberated the district and contributed significantly to the liberation of the South and national reunification.

During the process of building, fighting and growing up, with the achievements in the resistance war against the US to save the country, the armed forces of Company 33 of Go Dau local troops were awarded 15 Military Exploit Medals by the Party and State (including 2 Second Class Military Exploit Medals and 13 Third Class Military Exploit Medals).

The unit achieved the title of “Determined to Win Unit” for 4 consecutive years (from 1968 to 1971) and was awarded many certificates of merit, certificates of merit, and many titles of “Brave American Destroyer”, “Brave Mechanized Destroyer”, “Brave Victory Hero”. Especially after the liberation of the South, the 33rd Company of Go Dau local troops was honored by the State as a “Hero of the Armed Forces” unit on January 24, 1976.

After the day the South was completely liberated and the country was unified, the country entered a new revolutionary stage of building and defending the Fatherland. The 33rd Company of Go Dau local troops went down in the history of heroic struggle of the army and people of Go Dau district in particular, of Tay Ninh province and the whole country in general.

Some of the officers and soldiers of Unit C33 have transferred to other jobs and hold important positions in the Party, government and organizations, while others continue to serve in the Vietnam People's Army... Currently, the officers and soldiers of Company 33 of Go Dau district are old and in poor health, and have been gradually given retirement policies by the Party and the State.

Although no longer directly involved in the work, the officers and soldiers of C33 still maintain the qualities of "Uncle Ho's soldiers", actively participate in local activities, always set good examples in implementing the Party's policies and the State's laws, and building a prosperous and happy family life.

Duy Huan

(Based on documents of the Traditional Liaison Committee of the 33rd Company of the Go Dau local army, provided by Mr. Tran Van Nghe - Head of the Liaison Committee)

Source: https://baotayninh.vn/vai-net-ve-dai-doi-33-bo-doi-dia-phuong-go-dau-anh-hung-a188345.html