Special national relic Son La Prison and To Hieu spirit

In the early days of spring, from Hung Yen , we had the opportunity to visit the special national relic - Son La Prison. The documentary photos mounted on the mossy stone walls of the prison and the inspiring introduction of the tour guide made us feel overwhelmed with emotions when we saw with our own eyes the historical evidences that proved a heroic period of revolutionary struggle, the indomitable spirit of the steadfast communists, represented by comrade To Hieu.

In 1908, the French colonialists began building Son La prison on Khau Ca hilltop, now in group 9, To Hieu ward, Son La city (Son La province). After 3 times of construction and expansion, Son La prison has a total area of ^2,184m2 . The French colonialists turned this place into a "hell on earth" including the following items: Main gate and surrounding fence; guard tower system; punishment cells both above and below ground; common prison yard... However, it was also in this "hell on earth" that the spirit of the communists shone even brighter. This place nurtured the first "red seeds" for the revolutionary movement in Vietnam, typically comrades: Truong Chinh, Le Duan, Van Tien Dung, Tran Quoc Hoan, Nguyen Luong Bang... In particular, comrade To Hieu was considered the leading bird in the revolutionary movement at Son La prison.

Comrade To Hieu was born in 1912 in a poor Confucian family with a tradition of patriotism in Xuan Cau village, Nghia Tru commune (Van Giang). He joined the revolution from a young age, and at the age of 18, he was arrested by the French colonialists and exiled to Con Dao. After being released from prison, he continued his revolutionary activities. By the end of 1939, he was once again sentenced to 5 years in prison and exiled to Son La Prison. Here, once again, the young communist To Hieu demonstrated his steadfast will and courage in the face of the enemy's torture, actively participating in the struggle against the prison guards. He was elected as Secretary of the Son La Prison Party Cell. He participated in writing articles and compiling training materials for cadres. He turned the enemy's prison into a school that trained many excellent cadres for the Party.

Tourists visit the special national relic Son La Prison

Ms. Lo Thuy Tien, a guide at Son La Provincial Museum, cannot remember how many times she has reenacted the story of the contributions of communist soldier To Hieu. Although she remembers every detail, every time she leads tourists around and introduces the story, Ms. Tien always has special emotions. "Every time I introduce the story of To Hieu, I feel very proud. That is when I can tell tourists and people about the indomitable fighting spirit of the communist prisoners here, typically the example of To Hieu. Through that, visitors will understand more deeply and be more proud of their nation and the history of their homeland" - Ms. Tien said.

Going back in history, at that time To Hieu was considered an extremely dangerous element and, under the pretext of having tuberculosis, the French colonialists imprisoned To Hieu in a solitary cell next to the patrol corridor. Hunger, cold, illness, and the enemy's savage beatings not only failed to crush his revolutionary will, but on the contrary, they further fueled the iron will of a communist. Although tuberculosis ravaged his body, To Hieu still diligently wrote documents, imparted experiences, and trained party members with a revolutionary optimism. He often sat on a cement platform, facing the wall, his knees drawn up against his chest to compress the wound in his lungs to ease the pain, writing documents while coughing, sometimes spitting out blood. It was also during these days, from the rare drops of water in the dark prison, To Hieu planted a peach tree right next to the corner of his cell.

On March 7, 1944, To Hieu breathed his last at the age of 32. Comrade To Hieu passed away, but his name and career will forever be recorded in the glorious history of the nation, becoming the symbol of the "To Hieu Spirit" of the generation of exemplary leaders. That spirit will last forever, proving the immortality of a nation that has never succumbed to difficulties and challenges. To commemorate their beloved comrade, the communists in Son La Prison carved a stele with the name "To Hieu" and secretly placed it under his grave. The peach tree that To Hieu used to take care of every day continues to be looked after by the comrades who stayed behind. Every spring, it blooms with pink flowers and green buds, sowing hope for the future of the revolution. After the bombings by the French colonialists in 1952 and the American imperialists in 1965, Son La Prison was almost completely destroyed, but the peach tree remained intact as a witness to history, affirming the strong vitality and indomitable will of the communist soldiers. Later, the tree was named "To Hieu peach tree". Today, anyone who visits this place wants to stand under the green canopy to remember a glorious period of struggle of the Vietnamese revolution.

On December 31, 2014, Son La Prison was recognized by the Prime Minister as a special national monument. Every year, this place welcomes hundreds of thousands of domestic and international visitors, and is a red address for educating the revolutionary tradition for the younger generation. Comrade Ngo Thi Hai Yen, Director of Son La Provincial Museum, said: To enrich the artifacts of Son La Prison relic, as well as the story of To Hieu, every year, we proactively coordinate with Hung Yen province and relatives of comrade To Hieu to collect and add more artifacts. The cadres and tour guides also study memoirs, articles, and speeches of revolutionary predecessors and former political prisoners at Son La Prison to supplement and enrich the documents, explanations, and convey them to the people and tourists.

Coming to Son La Prison and standing under the green canopy of To Hieu peach tree, our young generation seemed to understand more about the glorious historical slices in the heroic, resilient, and indomitable struggle for national independence and freedom of the loyal communist soldiers. To Hieu's example and spirit will forever be an invaluable asset to the revolutionary cause of the Party and the Vietnamese people in general, especially the pride of Hung Yen in particular.

Le Hieu

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