Editor's note: Pursuant to Official Dispatch No. 9565-CV/BTGTW dated September 26, 2024 of the Central Propaganda Department, Official Dispatch No. 1590-CV/BTGTU dated September 30, 2024 of the Provincial Party Committee's Propaganda Department on propaganda to celebrate the 110th anniversary of the birth of Comrade Ly Tu Trong (October 20, 1914 - October 20, 2024), Hung Yen Newspaper published the Outline of propaganda to celebrate the 110th anniversary of the birth of Comrade Ly Tu Trong - the first Communist Youth Union member (October 20, 1914 - October 20, 2024). The Outline was compiled by the Central Propaganda Department, Ha Tinh Provincial Party Committee, and the Central Committee of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union.
I. OVERVIEW OF BIOGRAPHY AND REVOLUTIONARY ACTIVITIES OF COMRADE LY TU TRONG
Ly Tu Trong's real name is Le Huu Trong, born on October 20, 1914 in Ban May, Nakhon Phanom province, Kingdom of Thailand 1 (Northeast region of Siam, Lac Hon province - the boundary at the beginning of the last century) in a family with a rich tradition of patriotism. Ly Tu Trong's father is Mr. Le Huu Dat, from Ke Vet village (now Viet Tien commune), Thach Ha district, Ha Tinh province 2 ; his mother is Mrs. Nguyen Thi Som from Can Loc, Ha Tinh province. During this period, due to having to avoid the fierce pursuit of the French colonialists, tens of thousands of patriotic compatriots (mostly from the Central region, mainly in the provinces of Thanh Hoa, Nghe An , Ha Tinh, Quang Binh, Quang Tri...) who had risen up with Phan Dinh Phung to fight the French and then followed Phan Boi Chau to join the Vietnam Restoration Association to seek "national restoration" were forced to find a way to cross the high Truong Son mountains and cross the Mother River (Mekong) to both plow and earn a living and to organize forces to return to fight the French with the sharing and protection of the people of the neighboring country.
At the age of 4 or 5, Le Huu Trong was sent by his parents to live with Mr. and Mrs. Cuu Tuan 3 , a fellow countryman and close comrade in the "Quang Phuc Quan" (armed force of the Vietnam Quang Phuc Association) so that his parents could spend time both farming and building volunteer armies.
Growing up in the spirit and tradition of patriotism of both his family and overseas Vietnamese, at the age of 6, Le Huu Trong was able to attend a school opened by the leaders of the Vietnam Restoration Association in Ban May. Here, he learned the history of Vietnam, patriotic literature and poetry of Phan Boi Chau and other patriots, as well as Chinese and Thai languages.
In 1925, the Vietnam Revolutionary Youth Association was established in Guangzhou, China. In mid-1925, comrade Ngo Chinh Quoc - a member of the Vietnam Revolutionary Youth Association went to Thailand to meet Mr. Dang Thuc Hua to convey the direction of comrade Ly Thuy (ie Nguyen Ai Quoc) on selecting a number of children of patriotic Vietnamese families there to send to Guangzhou (China) to study, preparing to build a communist youth organization in Vietnam. Le Huu Trong was one of the eight selected teenagers.
Immediately after arriving in Guangzhou and throughout the years of receiving the attentive care of food, accommodation, and especially daily training and study by comrade Vuong (ie Ly Thuy - Nguyen Ai Quoc), the entire group of teenagers demonstrated a spirit of effort in all their studies and activities. Comrade Vuong brought the group of teenagers into the "Young Pioneers of Vietnam" group, the first form of communist youth organization of the Vietnamese revolution, and directly educated and trained them. Comrade Vuong often discussed with comrades in the General Department about Ly Huu Trong, the youngest student in the group but with an intelligent nature, very eager to learn, very active in training and a sense of discipline in daily life. Comrade Vuong and comrades in the General Department planned to select a number of teenagers, including Ly Huu Trong, to send to the Soviet Union for long-term training. To ensure the group's secret operations, all members of the group changed their surname to Ly (the same surname as Ly Thuy - Nguyen Ai Quoc). Le Huu Trong changed his name to Ly Tu Trong, and was later introduced by Nguyen Ai Quoc to study high school in Guangzhou. Being intelligent, active, and resourceful, after a short time, Ly Tu Trong became fluent in Chinese and was appointed as a liaison for the General Department of the Vietnam Revolutionary Youth Association in Guangzhou.
In April 1927, Chiang Kai-shek launched a counter-revolution in Shanghai, China, killing thousands of communist party members and revolutionary workers, and at the same time declaring the establishment of a "National Government" representing the interests of the big landlords and big comprador bourgeoisie in China. When the Guangzhou uprising broke out, the 4 Vietnamese comrades were studying at the headquarters of the Vietnam Revolutionary Youth Association in Guangzhou and the Whampoa Military School, including Ly Tu Trong, who participated in the revolutionary forces. After the uprising failed, the group of Vietnamese youth was arrested, and a number of soldiers and cadres of the Association temporarily returned to their country.
By mid-1929, the revolutionary situation had a new change. Communist organizations in Vietnam were established one after another. Ly Tu Trong was sent back to the country to work in Saigon - Cho Lon, participating in organizing rallies in Saigon, the Indochina Workers' Conference, and at the same time undertaking the task of domestic and international liaison for the Southern Regional Party Committee. Ly Tu Trong was assigned a special task, mobilizing and gathering young people in factories and schools to establish the Communist Youth Union. Under the alias Nguyen Huy, Ly Tu Trong applied to work as a coal factory worker in Saigon.
In 1930, when the Party Central Committee returned to Saigon, Ly Tu Trong worked with comrades Tran Phu and Ngo Gia Tu. At that time, Ly Tu Trong's task was to act as a liaison between the Party base on the international ship and the Southern Regional Party Committee, and to act as a liaison between the Southern Regional Party Committee and the Party chapters in Saigon - Cho Lon. The Party Central Committee assigned Ly Tu Trong the task of studying the youth situation in Saigon - Cho Lon to prepare for the establishment of the Communist Youth Union.
On February 8, 1931, on the occasion of the first anniversary of the Yen Bai uprising, the Southern Regional Party Committee organized a propaganda session calling for a worker-peasant alliance, demanding wage increases and reduced working hours. Comrade Phan Boi (alias Quang), who was in charge of propaganda for the Regional Party Committee at the time, was assigned to be the head of the organizing committee, and Ly Tu Trong was assigned to be the security guard. When the crowd finished watching football at the CIA stadium and had just poured out into the street, comrade Phan Boi stood up to give a speech, the police rushed in, and the secret agent Legrand jumped in to arrest comrade Phan Boi. With no other way to save his comrade, Ly Tu Trong pulled out his gun and shot the secret agent down. Before that shocking event, the French colonialists tried their best to hunt him down and captured him alive.
After being captured by the French colonialists, Ly Tu Trong was tortured and detained in two places, Catinat outpost and Saigon Prison. Despite being tortured extremely brutally, the enemy could not extract any information from him, only saying his name was Nguyen Huy. After being imprisoned and tortured in Saigon Prison for a while without any results, they brought him to trial. Fearing the revolutionary movement, the French colonial government in Indochina opened a criminal court to try a Vietnamese communist soldier who was not yet 17 years old. Ly Tu Trong was sentenced to death. During his last days in the beheading cell, Ly Tu Trong remained optimistic and loved life, believing in the victory of the revolution. Although he was chained, he still exercised every day, read the Tale of Kieu, and encouraged young people to uphold their revolutionary will. His indomitable spirit made the prison guards admire and surprise him, they called him "Mr. Little", "truly a man of steel".
On the evening of November 20, 1931, the prison guards quietly brought the guillotine to the door of the Big Prison. At this time, the entire prison was in an uproar, the sound of banging on the door, the screams, the slogans of thousands of prisoners, including common criminals, were heard outside: "Down with the colonialists who executed Mr. Trong", "Down with the colonialists who murdered Nguyen Huy", "Free Ly Tu Trong". The colonialists ordered the alarm, surrounded the Big Prison, and sent soldiers to rush into the prisons to tie the hands and shackle the feet of the prisoners, but the screams still rang out. The door of the death row cell opened, a group of soldiers with guns in their hands surrounded Ly Tu Trong. He calmly and leisurely walked, shouting loudly: "Long live the Indochinese Communist Party!" "Vietnam, long live independent Vietnam!", "Long live the success of the Vietnamese revolution!"
Prisoners in the prisons shouted in unison. A moment later, from the gate of Saigon's Great Prison, a voice echoed: "Arise, slaves of the world! Arise, rise..."
That is the greeting of Ly Tu Trong sent back to our compatriots and comrades.
His heroic sacrifice became a noble symbol of revolutionary heroism, a call for generations of Vietnamese youth to stand up and fight for national liberation and reunification.
II. THE REVOLUTIONARY SPIRIT, STABILIZING IDEALS AND HEROIC SACRIFICE OF COMRADE LY TU TRONG - A BRIGHT EXAMPLE FOR THE YOUNG GENERATION TO FOLLOW
1. Comrade Ly Tu Trong - A patriotic young man, brave, passionate about ideals and full of revolutionary enthusiasm
Born into a family with a rich tradition of patriotism, along with the historical, cultural and revolutionary traditions of Ha Tinh, it contributed to fostering in the young man a love for his homeland and country; understanding the suffering and injustice of the working class under the oppression and exploitation of the colonial and feudal governments, hating the invaders and their lackeys, which fostered the will and spirit of learning and striving to find a way to save the country of comrade Ly Tu Trong.
During his time studying at Tu Dang Primary School, Ly Tu Trong showed himself to be a hard-working, studious teenager who wanted to grow up and contribute to his homeland and country. The turning point in Ly Tu Trong's life was being selected to study in Guangzhou and being brought into the "Young Pioneers of Vietnam" group by comrade Nguyen Ai Quoc. Here, Ly Tu Trong was guided by comrades in the General Department and understood why it was necessary to make a revolution to fight the invading French colonialists, why it was necessary to establish an Association; and what communism was. During his time studying at Zhongshan University, Guangzhou, Ly Tu Trong was fluent in Chinese and was appointed as a liaison for the General Department of the Vietnam Revolutionary Youth Association in Guangzhou. Being intelligent, active, and resourceful, Ly Tu Trong actively contributed to the communication between the General Department of the Vietnam Revolutionary Youth Association and the Party and Vietnamese revolutionary cadres operating in China, and at the same time organized the transfer of Party letters and documents back to the country.
Ly Tu Trong's shot to save comrade Phan Boi, the propaganda officer of the Regional Party Committee, who was giving a speech in public, shook Saigon. The French colonialists did not think that a 17-year-old young man would dare to risk his life to shoot and kill spy LeGrand right in front of the public.
During his last days in the guillotine cell, Ly Tu Trong remained optimistic and loved life, believing in the victory of the revolution. The French colonialists did not dare to publicly execute Ly Tu Trong. Taking advantage of the dawn of November 21, 1931, they cowardly set up a guillotine in the Saigon prison to kill him silently. 5 Ly Tu Trong's indomitable revolutionary spirit made the enemy extremely afraid, contributing to strongly encouraging the revolutionary movement in the whole country at that time. Although Ly Tu Trong's life was short, his revolutionary spirit became a shining example for generations of young people to follow. The spirit and will of the young Ly Tu Trong became a shining, sacred, and noble symbol in the hearts of generations of youth union members. His immortal saying "The path of youth is only the path of revolution, there can be no other path..." became the ideal of life and the guiding principle for generations of Vietnamese youth in all periods.
2. Comrade Ly Tu Trong - A staunch communist youth union member - An exemplary model of fighting spirit and steadfastness on the revolutionary path
During the days of his arrest, the French colonialists brutally tortured Ly Tu Trong to reveal clues and secret information of the Party and the revolution. However, the brutal beatings and tricks of the colonialists could not defeat the steadfast revolutionary soldier. The indomitable spirit, courage and bravery of the young revolutionary soldier made some secret agents go from anger to shock, surprise and admiration. During his imprisonment, Ly Tu Trong also encouraged and motivated his comrades in prison to have confidence to continue fighting for the independence and freedom of the nation.
Facing death, Ly Tu Trong was not afraid at all. He proactively turned the imperial court into a forum for communist soldiers. When the defense lawyer asked the colonialists to “show leniency” because Ly Tu Trong was not yet an adult and “acted without thinking”, he dismissed the question and said loudly: “I acted thoughtfully, I understood what I was doing, I did it for the purpose of revolution. I am not yet an adult, but I am wise enough to understand that the path of youth is only the path of revolution, there is no other path”. When the French colonial minister met Ly Tu Trong directly and uttered the following words: “Young and reckless, France is ready to forgive you. For intelligent people, the Government always supports you, as long as you honestly repent. If you want, you can go to France to study and return to help the country, where you can have high position and power, a beautiful wife and smart children, and live comfortably”. In response, Ly Tu Trong boldly said: “I was not born to eat that kind of rice.” Those “steely” words expressed the belief and optimism in the revolutionary path to national liberation and the determination to fight the enemy to the end of the young communist soldier Ly Tu Trong.
III. YOUTH LEARNS AND FOLLOWS THE BRIGHT REVOLUTIONARY MORAL EXAMPLE OF COMRADE LY TU TRONG
Following the example and footsteps of Ly Tu Trong, generations of Vietnamese youth united under the glorious flag of the Party, contributing to the August Revolution of 1945, founding the Democratic Republic of Vietnam. During the two resistance wars against French colonialism and American imperialism, generations of Vietnamese youth followed one another on the road with the spirit of "Determination to die for the Fatherland, determination to live", "Splitting Truong Son to save the country", contributing to the great victory, gaining independence and freedom for the Fatherland and unifying the country. During that long resistance war, many examples of resilient and brave youth emerged, such as: Tran Van On, Vo Thi Sau, La Van Cau, Cu Chinh Lan, Nguyen Thi Chien, Be Van Dan, Phan Dinh Giot, To Vinh Dien... millions of union members and youth participated in the "Three ready" and "Five volunteer" movements. From the patriotic emulation movements, many collectives and individuals with outstanding achievements have emerged, such as: Seven brave soldiers of Dien Ngoc - Quang Nam heroically fought back an enemy battalion; Ta Thi Kieu took the enemy's boot with her bare hands; Le Thi Hong Gam fought until her last breath, refusing to surrender to the enemy; the immortal saying of the young electrician Nguyen Van Troi "As long as the American invaders remain, there is no happiness" moved the youth and progressive people across the five continents; the cry of the heroic martyr Nguyen Viet Xuan "Aim straight at the enemy and shoot" became the command urging our army and people to rush forward and destroy the enemy... Right in the homeland of Ha Tinh, the heroic sacrifice of 10 female youth volunteer martyrs at Dong Loc T-junction built an immortal victory monument, symbolizing the brave spirit of girls forever in their twenties. All of them carry within themselves many beautiful dreams and ambitions, love life and desire to contribute, to fight, ready to sacrifice their youth, not sparing blood and bones on the fierce battlefield of bullets and bombs because they carry within themselves the noble revolutionary ideal: national independence, unification of the country.
Peace has been restored, entering a period of national renewal, generations of young people have strived to overcome difficulties and challenges, nurturing great dreams and ambitions. The revolutionary path of previous generations and comrade Ly Tu Trong has been guiding and guiding today's young generation to be proactive, volunteer, and take the lead in all fields. In recent years, the Youth Union and Association at all levels have initiated many initiatives and launched many meaningful campaigns and emulation movements. Each campaign and movement creates a healthy environment, positively affecting the awareness and actions of young people. In particular, regardless of the environment or field, future generations of the country clearly define their goals, ideals, and determination to rise up; promote the spirit and will of self-reliance in studying, training, and creativity in work. Propaganda and education work continues to have many innovations in both content and methods, especially the application of digital transformation in organizing educational activities; Strengthening the collection of positive information to push back the negative; organizing widespread political activities with many meaningful contents and effective new ways. The revolutionary action movements "Youth volunteers", "Creative youth", "Youth volunteers to protect the Fatherland" and the programs accompanying young people in studying; in starting a business, establishing a career; in training and developing life skills, improving physical fitness, cultural and spiritual life have been identified in accordance with the characteristics, qualifications, capacities and strengths of young people; meeting the needs and expectations of young people, thereby promoting the role of volunteering, participating in socio-economic development, building and protecting the Fatherland; at the same time creating an environment and conditions for young people to mature and develop comprehensively. From the movements, more and more outstanding collectives and individuals have emerged, leading in the fields of study, production, scientific and technological innovation, national defense, political security, social order and safety. The Youth Union organization has been increasingly consolidated. The number and quality of union members have been increasingly improved. The large contingent of Youth Union cadres with professional qualifications and skills has become a reliable source of successor cadres for the Party, government and unions at all levels.
Faced with the requirements of the period of accelerating industrialization and modernization of the country, the fourth industrial revolution and the integration process creating both opportunities and challenges for all countries, this requires Vietnamese youth today to continue to promote the spirit of vanguard, volunteerism, creativity and responsibility in the cause of building and defending the Fatherland, especially in international integration, national digital transformation, contributing to realizing the country's development goals to 2030, with a vision to 2045. Each youth union member must proactively and actively participate in studying to improve their political theory level, foster pure revolutionary ideals; actively study to improve their professional, scientific, technical and vocational qualifications; master modern science and technology; actively participate in building a healthy social environment; be proactive in taking the lead in socio-economic development, ensuring national defense and security; proactively participate in the international integration process.
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Commemorating the 110th anniversary of the birth of comrade Ly Tu Trong, paying tribute to the great contributions, strong will, indomitable spirit, and selfless sacrifice for the country and people of the first communist youth union member and previous generations who devoted their whole lives to the revolution, today's young generation vows to follow his example, determined to study and work to build the homeland and the country more and more beautiful. More than ever, the saying "The path of youth is only the revolutionary path, there can be no other path" urges the youth to strive to study, practice, take the lead in the scientific and technological revolution, fight uncompromisingly against negative phenomena and social evils; believe in and be loyal to the revolutionary cause of the Party, the generation of Vietnamese youth follows the example of comrade Ly Tu Trong, vows to continue writing the brilliant golden history of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union, of the heroic Vietnamese people, leading the country to rise up in the new era.
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1 Now it is Ban Na Chok, Nong Yat commune, Mueang Nakhon Phanom district. Siam is the Vietnamese transliteration of Siam - the name of Thailand before 1939. Since 1945, Thailand changed its name to Siam. In 1949, Siam was changed to Thailand as it is today (According to the book Portrait of Hero Ly Tu through historical documents - Duong Trong Phuc).
2 Formerly Viet Xuyen commune, in 2019, according to Resolution No. 819/NQ-UBTVQH14 of the National Assembly Standing Committee on the arrangement of commune-level administrative units in Ha Tinh province, Phu Viet, Viet Xuyen, and Thach Tien communes were merged with their entire population area into Viet Tien commune as it is today.
3 Mr. Cuu Tuan is also known by other names such as: Nguyen Huy Tuan, Ha Huy Tuan, Nguyen Cuu Tuan, Nguyen Ong Cuu, Ngo Tri Tuan, Ly Cuu, Ly Tuan, Ly Du. He participated in the Can Vuong movement under the leadership of Phan Dinh Phung, was suppressed by the French colonialists, he and his fellow countrymen fled to Siam. In the northeastern region of Siam, he was the one who reclaimed land and established a "plowing camp" to help the Vietnamese people. Mr. Cuu Tuan was a fellow countryman and comrade of Mr. Le Huu Dat - Ly Tu Trong's father. He adopted Ly Tu Trong when he was 3 years old.
Those 4 comrades are: Ho Tung Mau, Le Thiet Hung, Le Hong Son, Phung Chi Kien, Nguyen Son, Ly Phuong Duc, Ly Phuong Thuan, Ly Tri Thong, Ly Tu Trong, ... participating in revolutionary forces with different roles.
5 There are also some documents and articles stating that comrade Ly Tu Trong was executed in the early morning of November 20, 1931.
Source: https://baohungyen.vn/de-cuong-tuyen-truyen-ky-niem-110-nam-ngay-sinh-dong-chi-ly-tu-trong-nguoi-doan-vien-thanh-nien-cong-3175951.html
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