August Revolution 1945: Fostering pride and raising national status

Eighty years ago, the day President Ho Chi Minh read the Declaration of Independence in the golden sunlight of Ba Dinh Square was one of the most important historical and political events of the Vietnamese nation, marking a fundamental turning point in the country's development.

The victory of the August Revolution in 1945 is a glorious milestone in the history of nation-building and national defense of the Vietnamese people. As Vietnam enters a new era, the historical lessons learned from the August Revolution remain invaluable.

The era of national independence

According to Professor-Doctor Ta Ngoc Tan, Permanent Vice President of the Central Theoretical Council, former Director of the Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics, the victory of the August Revolution in 1945 not only brought independence to the nation, establishing the Democratic Republic of Vietnam - the first people's democratic state in Southeast Asia, but also laid the foundation for building a new national institutional system unprecedented in the history of Vietnam - an independent, people's democratic national institutional system.

Professor-Doctor Ta Ngoc Tan speaks at the seminar "Resolution 68-NQ/TW: Driving Force for the Development of Vietnam's Private Economy " on August 15 in Hanoi. (Photo: CTV/Vietnam+)

Before 1945, Vietnam was a semi-feudal colony, under the domination of French colonialism and Japanese fascism, without a constitution and without an independent legal system. The institutional system at that time was all oriented towards serving the interests of the ruling class and foreign powers; completely opposed to the interests and aspirations of the people; the people had no democratic rights, no right to decide the fate of the nation.

The victory of the August Revolution in 1945 shattered the shackles of slavery imposed by French colonialism and Japanese fascism, and overthrew the autocratic monarchy that had existed for thousands of years in our country; opening a new era in the history of the nation - the era of national independence and socialism.

"The Party, led by President Ho Chi Minh, promptly proceeded to build a comprehensive, independent, democratic national institutional system across all fields, guiding the process of creating and building a new society and protecting the achievements of the revolution," Professor-Doctor Ta Ngoc Tan stated.

On August 14, 1945, the Ba To guerrilla unit advanced towards Quang Ngai town, joining the people in an uprising to seize power. (Photo: VNA archives)

The August Revolution of 1945 was not only a national liberation revolution but also a revolution led by the working class, belonging to the category of socialist revolution. The success of the Vietnamese revolution encouraged the people of many Asian and African countries to rise up to fight against colonial oppression and exploitation, and gain national independence. In the 20th century, Vietnam became the leading flag for national liberation movements all over the world.

President Ho Chi Minh affirmed the great significance of the August Revolution: “Not only the working class and the Vietnamese people can be proud, but the working class and oppressed peoples elsewhere can also be proud that this was the first time in the revolutionary history of colonial and semi-colonial peoples that a Party only 15 years old had successfully led the revolution and taken power nationwide.”

According to Associate Professor-Doctor Dinh Quang Hai, former Director of the Institute of History, Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences, the revolutionary struggle movement in Laos, Indonesia, India, China, Syria, Lebanon... has won; especially after the French colonialists were defeated in Vietnam, many countries in Africa such as Algeria, Madagascar... followed the example of Vietnam to rise up to fight for national liberation, escape from the yoke of colonialism, and end the brutal domination of old colonialism.

“The victory of the August Revolution in 1945 in Vietnam dealt a heavy blow to the colonial system of imperialism in Asia, contributed significantly to the disintegration of old colonialism worldwide, and strongly encouraged the struggle of oppressed peoples against the yoke of imperialism for national independence, democracy and socialism,” Mr. Hai said.

Radiantly entering a new era.

In the context of the nation's historical transformation, Vietnam has not only defended its independence as it did after the August Revolution of 1945, but has also gone further, affirming the country's foundation, position, and prestige on the international stage.

With the goal of Vietnam becoming a developing country with modern industry and high average income by 2030; and becoming a developed socialist country with high income by 2045, the construction and completion of a modern, democratic, effective and integrated national institutional system is an inevitable and urgent requirement.

Professor-Doctor Ta Ngoc Tan believes that this requires us not only to look to the future, but also to look to the past, exploiting the depth of history to promote valuable lessons from the practice of building the institutional system after the August Revolution in 1945 in the new historical context and conditions.

According to Professor-Doctor Ta Ngoc Tan's analysis, Vietnam is entering a new stage of development, with outstanding characteristics such as: Transforming the development model from extensive to intensive growth, based on science, technology and innovation; comprehensive international integration, being a strategic partner of many countries, an active member in international organizations; Vietnam's geopolitical position is increasing.

However, increasingly complex international security, economic, and political fluctuations; the need for modern governance; the development gap; and the risk of falling behind if institutional reforms are not implemented promptly... are significant challenges.

Therefore, it is necessary to continue to improve institutions and laws to remove "bottlenecks", unleash resources for national development; promote democracy and the role of the people as the main subject. Any institution that does not put the people at the center will inevitably lose its solid and lasting political and social foundation.

In the field of foreign affairs and international integration, Associate Professor - Doctor Nguyen Viet Thao, former Deputy Director of the Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics, said that it is necessary to look back at the historical value of the August Revolution to see more clearly the process of Vietnam from a backward colony to an independent nation.

From the very beginning of the nation's founding, President Ho Chi Minh declared that the Democratic Republic of Vietnam was ready to "befriend all democratic countries and not harbor enmity towards anyone."

Foreign Minister Nguyen Manh Cam (second from right), the ASEAN Secretary-General, and ASEAN foreign ministers at the meeting to admit Vietnam as a full member of the bloc. (Photo: VNA)

According to Mr. Nguyen Viet Thao, that viewpoint has been consistently demonstrated through our facilitation of investment by foreign capitalists and technicians in all our industries. Vietnam is ready to expand ports, airports and roads for international trade and transit. Our country participates in all international economic cooperation organizations under the leadership of the United Nations...

Mr. Thao believes that these are valuable lessons that can be applied to current foreign affairs work to further enhance the nation's increasingly glorious position.

(Vietnam+)

Source: https://www.vietnamplus.vn/cach-mang-thang-tam-nam-1945-hun-duc-niem-tu-hao-nang-cao-vi-the-quoc-gia-post1056543.vnp