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[The methodical eradication of a class in the North Vietnam society at
that time was in no doubt a national policy based on "absolute class
struggle" of Marxism-Leninism (Vo Nhan Tri's "Croissance economique de la
Republique democratique du Vietnam, p. 200).
According to witnesses, there were lawful mistakes due to individual
vengence or bad behavior of opportunist cadres; however, the elimination
of tens of thousand people or more in 4 consecutive years (1952-1956)
under Chinh's reponsibility was not known by Thanh ?
Trained with Stalinist doctrine, Thanh, Chinh and other early communist
leaders (Ton Duc Thang : fanatical extremist; Nguyen Luong Bang : party
founder member in 1930, extremist; Le Duan : party founder member,
authoritarian and pragmatist; Le Duc Tho : party founder member and
authoritarian, vain; Vo Nguyen Giap : vain, abrasive, authoritarian; Pham
Hung : party founder member and authoritarian, abrupt; Nguyen Duy Trinh :
party founder member and dogmatic, uncompromising extremist...) were
almost radical or influenced much by Mao's thoughts. According to Hoan's
book (A Drop in the Ocean, p. 365), Le Duan who replaced Chinh said that
proceedings of dispossessing land were just a very replica of China.
According to Liem's "The Land Reform of Ho Chi Minh : mistake or crime ?",
the massacre divided into 5 phases showed that Thanh took firmly the power
at that period. After a phase, there was always a gathering of Land
Reform cadres to finalize results and experiences. They must
self-criticize, analyze, bring forward negatives and positives,...so that
the next phase would be done better. The more land reform was in
progress, the more the death toll increased. However, Thanh did not give
in and determined to go ahead until the end. One well-known principle in
NVN was "killing wrongly rather than freeing mistakenly" or "Noble ends
justified ignoble means"; due to these thinkings, some Viets must be wiped
out by mere Viets to become fertilizers which would flourish a newer,
justlier and cleaner society as Thanh ever imagined.
Chinh was only a guinee-pig and scape-goat. Thanh's letter mentioned
above on 1/7/1956 sent to Land Reform cadres after the 5th phase showed
that he was very skillful to protect his own prestige and the fame of the
party. Thanh did not want his party's image to be damaged.
Furthermore, according to the late South Vietnam writer Nguyen Manh Con
(Nguye^~n Ma.nh Co^n) in his book titled "Hoa` bi`nh, nghi~ gi`, la`m gi`
?" (Peace, what to think and to do ?), in a meeting early in 1950 between
the politburo of the Worker's Party and the delegation representing the
Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and its army, Ho Chi Minh requested for arms
to "liberate" Vietnam quickly. The head of the delegation, Yeh Chien-Ying
(Die^.p Kie^'m Anh; Thanh might be party member of the CCP in
1920s-1930s; Thanh once worked closely with general Yeh in the 8th Route
Army [ DDe^. ba't lo^. qua^n] in 1938 under alias Ho Quang) who was then
president of the Chinese National Assembly (Chu? ti.ch quo^'c ho^.i),
answered that, "your revolution was for proprietors, not for the
proletariat, because you, comrades, did not start a class struggle.
Communist revolution were only for the proletariat. Furthermore, in this
kind of revolution, spirit of self-help was main element. Knowing how to
drive and mobilize people can help you to win any enemy. China was just
liberated (1949) and still met many difficulties. However, the party and
its people are ready to help comrades liberate Vietnam. We would provide
you with arms and other things and hope you must help the Chinese people
rice and salt in this difficult time".
As a result, in this campaign, North Vietnamese resources were squeezed
out to exchange for help from communist Chinese. A banner in this period
was then "patriotism is not enough; communism is the right path". The
Land Reform and heavy taxing upon the peasantry were done to please both
the ICP and CCP. The slogan "the anti-imperialist and the the anti-feudal
fights are of equal important" was finally understood.
About Chinh, in the Land Reform campaign, he was not fast enough as some
high-ranking cadres who had already gone back to their hometowns and told
their relatives to reduce own lands long before the campaign started.
Although losing the position of general-secretary, Chinh still had enough
prestige to retain in the politburo and the secretariat of the Central
Committee. In mid-1958, Chinh's power was revived and on 29/4/1958, he
became vice-premier and president of the Scientific Research Council.
Chinh's role was negligible during the Vietnam war (1960-1975). After the
debacle of Saigon, Chinh led a delegation to go to the South Vietnam for
discussion of reunification. In 1976, Chinh also served as chairman of
the Standing Committee of the National Assembly and also of the committee
appointed to draft a new constitution. Until 1981, after the declaration
of a new constitution, Chinh was head of the State Council (Ho^.i ddo^`ng
nha` nu+o+'c) and became the 2nd most powerful man in the triumvirate Le
Duan - Truong Chinh - Pham Van Dong.
After the 10th Central Committee conference, held from 19/5-6/6/1986,
Chinh temporarily took Duan's position on 10/6/1986. Le Duan died on
10/7/1986. On 14/7/1986, Chinh became general-secretary. At the 6th
party conference on 18/12/1986, Chinh volunteered to withdraw and was
appointed as adviser for the Central Committee.
Then, Chinh, remembered in international academic circle as a bright
intellectual, a writer of many books, a poet (pen-name "Red Wave" or So'ng
Ho^`ng) with many heroic and patriotic poems, and as a leading
dialectician, fell down from stair at home and died at mid-day on
30/9/1988.*]
(continued)
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