Updated: 16/04/2025 05:25:35
DTO - In April 1975, the situation between our forces and the enemy in our province changed rapidly.
Implementing the March 1975 Resolution of the Sa Dec Provincial Party Committee (now Dong Thap province), the people and military in various parts of the province simultaneously developed the political forces of the masses, armed forces, and military mobilization, while continuously attacking and rising up to break the enemy's grip, dismantle enemy outposts, and mobilize to disintegrate enemy ranks - here are a few news items:
Tourists visiting the Xeo Quit Historical Site (Photo: MX)
On the night of April 5, 1975, the armed forces of Cao Lanh town fired shells at enemy artillery positions in Quan Khanh, damaging three 105mm cannons.
At Kien Van, we launched a surprise attack, capturing the Ca Tac outpost, seizing 8 AR-15 rifles and 1 M.79 grenade launcher, and forcing the withdrawal from the Xang Xeo outpost.
South of the river, on the night of April 7, 1975, we attacked the Tan Khanh Tay and Tan My sub-districts, forcing the withdrawal from the Muong Khai outpost.
On the night of April 9th to 10th, 1975, our special forces destroyed the Hoa Khanh bridge in the inner city of Sa Dec, cutting off the Sa Dec- Vinh Long road and severing sections of roads 23 and 13.
On the night of April 19, 1975, we broke through the Ca Duc outpost in Phong My. The guerrillas were positioned along the Nguyen Van Tiep A canal, and the Long Hiep guerrillas were positioned west of Highway 30.
South of the river, the 441st Security Battalion, after clearing the Lap Vo area, had its ranks weakened and had to return to Tan Duong to regroup. Meanwhile, the 417th Security Battalion in Cao Lanh was routed by our forces, its designation erased.
The local officials were in utter panic; Cử from Mỹ Xương, Phát from Mỹ Hội, and the head of the police force all fled.
During the offensive in early April 1975, our province killed 117 enemy soldiers, wounded 220, captured 41, seized 63 weapons, and 234 enemy soldiers deserted. Notably, the local village and hamlet forces were able to dismantle enemy outposts on their own.
And in the spirit of victory, young people from all over the province, including those fleeing conscription and even members of the civil defense, deserted and volunteered to join the armed liberation forces. In Chau Thanh district alone, 200 young people joined the village guerrillas, and 60 joined the district and provincial army. Party branches in each commune quickly built up their own offensive and uprising forces.
On April 15, 1975, at the Xeo Quit base, the Standing Committee of the Sa Dec Provincial Party Committee held a conference to receive the order for the General Offensive and Uprising from the Central Committee and the Regional Party Committee. The Secretaries of the District Party Committees of My An (Pham Van Thanh - Hai Hon), Cao Lan (Dinh Phuoc Hai - Tu Nam Son), and Kien Van (Vo Chi Cong), along with leaders of the Military Committee, the Security Committee, and other provincial departments, attended.
In the upper left corner of the hall hung two maps of Southern Vietnam and Sa Dec province. Vo Thai Hoa, Chief of the Provincial Party Committee Office, sat working there with his radio always on, listening to the Voice of Vietnam, the Liberation Radio, and even Saigon Radio. Whenever there was news of the liberation of another province, Thai Hoa would use a red pencil to cross it out. The delegates attending the meeting chatted and laughed heartily.
After reviewing the situation throughout the region and within the province in recent days, the conference assessed the rapidly changing revolutionary situation in our favor. The enemy was trying to recruit soldiers, mobilize troops, and plunder rice, money, and other resources, but their morale and organizational collapse were irresistible. Comrade Nguyen The Huu, Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee, with a cheerful expression, remarked that the Provincial Party Committee's March 1975 Resolution, less than a month old, had already rendered many targets unsuitable and required adjustment. He pointed out the strengths and weaknesses of the past period, criticizing those who still harbored a mentality of waiting, relying on others, and hesitating to boldly mobilize the masses. He affirmed that although the enemy forces were still numerous and occupied towns, waterways, and densely populated areas, their morale was unstoppable and demoralized. Our strength was rising, and we had to seize the opportunity to intensify our three-pronged attack on the enemy to ensure final victory. The conference engaged in lively discussions on various aspects, unanimously agreeing on the determination to build a three-pronged attack force—armed, political, and military mobilization—with the mindset of achieving 20 years in one day, fulfilling the mission: Province liberating province, district liberating district, and commune liberating commune. Because, in reality, our province lacked a regional or regional main force, we had to rely entirely on self-reliance. Specifically, the province was tasked with liberating the two towns of Cao Lãnh and Sa Đéc; Mỹ An district with liberating the Mỹ An sub-district; Kiến Văn district with liberating the Kiến Văn sub-district; and Cao Lãnh district with liberating the Trần Quốc Toản Military Training Center and the Doi Me neighborhood. Each commune was responsible for the objective of liberating the sub-district within its own commune…
By the end of April 15, 1975, the meeting continued into the night of April 15, discussing many more specific matters. The District Party Secretaries returned to their respective areas to urgently implement the plan and assigned District Party Committee members to go to the absent communes to help them plan and implement measures for liberating their localities. The meeting also discussed mobilizing private tractors to plow the land for the newly displaced people returning home, clearing the land for the upcoming rice crop. The Standing Committee of the Provincial Party Committee assigned Comrade Nam Mai to travel openly across the southern river to disseminate the spirit of this meeting to the Southern River Forward Command. Comrade Tran Anh Dien (Tam Be) – a Standing Committee member of the Regional Party Committee – was directly in charge of the southern river battlefield there.
The meeting lasted until the early morning of April 16, 1975. The delegates took a short break to wash their faces, use the restroom, have breakfast, and then return to continue the meeting. On the wall at the head of the hall hung a red banner with white lettering: Ceremony for Receiving the XXX Order (symbol of the General Offensive - General Uprising). Above it were the Party flag and a portrait of President Ho Chi Minh.
The delegates, filled with joy and emotion, sat neatly cross-legged on two rows of wooden planks along the hall. After the Central Bureau and the Central-Southern Regional Party Committee read the order for the General Offensive and Uprising, all delegates raised their fists and swore: "We swear." Comrade Nguyen The Huu solemnly declared, as if taking an oath: "This is the last meeting in this Xeo Quit hall. The next meeting must be in the liberated town of Cao Lanh."
Right at the meeting, Comrade Mười Long - Standing Member of the Propaganda Department - was tasked with writing an oath appealing to the people and soldiers in the province, in the name of the National Liberation Front Committee and the Revolutionary People's Committee. The appeal was written and approved at the conference and immediately sent to the wax printing house, printed on wax paper, and sent to various places. The full text of the appeal is as follows:
CALL TO ACTION
OF THE NATIONAL LIBERATION FRONT COMMITTEE AND THE PEOPLE'S REVOLUTIONARY COMMITTEE OF SA DEC PROVINCE
Beloved people and soldiers of Sa Dec!
The entire South is experiencing the most intense and passionate moments of the revolution. The offensive and uprising of our entire army and people to punish the Thieu regime for violating the Paris Agreement is achieving tremendous victories. In just one month, we have swept the enemy out of 16 provinces and are continuing to encircle and destroy them in the remaining areas. In our province, the people and army of Sa Dec have also achieved great victories, destroying over 150 enemy outposts and liberating vast areas. The puppet army and regime are being severely damaged and are on the verge of complete collapse, a situation that cannot be resisted.
The time has come to rise up, overthrow the reactionary puppet regime of Nguyen Van Thieu, and seize complete power for our people!
The sacred and urgent task of our entire army and people today is to rise up, attack, attack, and rise up with the momentum of a raging storm, continuously and relentlessly until complete victory is achieved.
Beloved people and soldiers of Sa Dec!
Before this final battle to liberate the South and unify the Fatherland, the Revolutionary People's Committee of Sa Dec province urgently appealed:
All compatriots in the province, in liberated areas as well as in enemy-controlled areas, religious communities, towns, and cities, regardless of gender, age, religion or secular background, must unite and rise up simultaneously in armed rebellion to seize power. Those with guns should use guns; those without guns should use knives, machetes, and sticks to eliminate the stubborn oppressors, dismantle the enemy's control, destroy all enemy outposts, annihilate and disperse the enemy's forces, and completely liberate their villages, hamlets, towns, and cities. The Hoa Hao religious community has long been oppressed and exploited by the US-Thieu regime, suffering immense hardship and suffering. This is the only opportunity for the people to rise up and save their religion and their lives. Resolutely resist the enemy's conscription and troop mobilization, and urgently call upon relatives still in the enemy ranks to turn their weapons and join the people in the rebellion to reclaim sovereignty.
The People's Liberation Armed Forces should raise high the banner of the historic Go Quan Cung uprising, continuously attack enemy strongholds, strike hard and decisively, coordinating with the uprising of the people.
Soldiers, officers, and policemen still in the ranks of the US-Thieu regime must recognize the times, avoid being dragged down by Thieu, immediately end their dark lives, turn their weapons around, and cooperate with the people in the uprising. Hesitation and delay at this moment will only harm themselves and incur the wrath of the Fatherland and the people.
One day is worth 20 years! Time is power! Seize the opportunity, advance swiftly, and we are determined to completely liberate our beloved Sa Dec province.
With the indomitable tradition of the Mekong Delta, the heroic Dong Thap, and the unwavering spirit of Commander Kieu and Commander Duong, our entire army and people bravely march forward!
Complete victory is ours!
April 15, 1975
That call was like a battle drum, a trumpet urging the entire army and people of the province to charge forward, responding to the Ho Chi Minh Campaign, attacking the enemy, and contributing alongside the army and people of the South to the complete liberation of the South and the province.
Nguyen Dac Hien
Source: https://baodongthap.vn/chinh-polit/cuoc-hop-cuoi-cung-o-xeo-quit-130733.aspx
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