President Ho Chi Minh's innovations in applying Marxism-Leninism

Vladimir Ilyich Lenin – the great leader of the world proletariat, founder of the Communist International; and leader of the Russian people in the October Revolution, establishing the first workers' and peasants' state in the world led by the party of the proletariat. Photo: VNA archives.

Important theoretical basis

Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen An Ninh (Ho Chi Minh National Political Academy) argues that the Vietnamese revolution's choice of "following Leninism" to liberate the nation and develop the country is the greatest theoretical achievement in President Ho Chi Minh's journey to find a way to save the country.

Of course, when applying the general principles of a global doctrine to the practical realities of a nation, a significant amount of creativity from the Party and its leaders is always required. Therefore, in current theoretical research, all developed countries following a socialist orientation have a leading thinker. They were the first to recognize, disseminate, and successfully apply Marxism-Leninism to their country's revolutionary process. In Vietnam, President Ho Chi Minh is a prime example of this.

According to Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen An Ninh, Lenin considered the theory of the "world historical mission of the working class" as the "central and main content of Marxist doctrine." He was also the great leader of the proletariat and the Communist Party of Russia, who successfully carried out the October Revolution (1917). In short, the ideology of liberating the working class, liberating society, and liberating humanity is the main axis of this doctrine.

President Ho Chi Minh creatively applied the theory of class liberation as the theoretical basis for the national liberation process. Prior to this, all Vietnamese revolutionaries had adopted a "nationalist" stance. This is why Phan Boi Chau, at the time, assessed that "socialism is a tank charging into the stronghold of nationalism." The unity of the entire nation, based on the principle that "workers and peasants are the root of the revolution," and that "other classes are allies" of the national liberation revolution and nation-building, was a very new and creative idea of President Ho Chi Minh. As practice has confirmed, this is a very correct idea because it is suitable to the conditions of Vietnam.

A significant innovation worth mentioning is President Ho Chi Minh's deep concern for the responsibility of contemporary Communist Parties in the liberation of colonial nations. Lenin was the first to address this responsibility in an important document of the Second Congress of the Communist International (July 1920). At this Congress, V.I. Lenin presented the "First Draft of the Theses on the National and Colonial Questions," which was supported by the entire Congress. From this, the revolutionary Nguyen Ai Quoc - Ho Chi Minh placed the process of national liberation within the process of the proletarian revolution and considered "the Vietnamese revolution as a part of the world revolution." The Communist Party of Vietnam, founded and nurtured by him, "is the offspring of the Nation," the Party of the working class, and at the same time "the Party of the Vietnamese nation." National liberation as a prerequisite for the liberation of oppressed and exploited classes was a very novel approach of President Ho Chi Minh.

"National independence linked with socialism" is also a typical example of Ho Chi Minh's creative thinking. On the first anniversary of Lenin's death, Nguyen Ai Quoc wrote the article "Lenin and the Colonial Peoples," in the Soviet Union's Red magazine, issue 2 (1925). Affirming Lenin's great contributions, he wrote: "In the history of the suffering and deprivation of colonial peoples, Lenin was the creator of a new life, a lighthouse guiding the path to liberation for all oppressed humanity." From that spirit, President Ho Chi Minh always linked national independence with the freedom and happiness of the people. Once a country gains independence, its people must enjoy the values of socialism: "Everyone must have food to eat, clothes to wear; everyone must have access to education."

Suitable for the conditions of the Vietnamese revolution.

Analyzing the proletarian revolution and the national liberation revolution, Associate Professor, Dr. Le Thi Thanh Ha, Deputy Director of the Institute of Sociology and Development (Ho Chi Minh National Political Academy), stated: Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels affirmed that the proletarian revolution would break out simultaneously in developed capitalist countries such as England, France, and the United States. Lenin, however, took a further step by suggesting that the proletarian revolution could break out in moderately developed capitalist countries like Russia and in colonial countries. He argued that the proletarian revolution could only succeed when the proletarian revolution in the mother country succeeded, and then return to the proletarian revolution in the mother country.

President Ho Chi Minh and the Communist Party of Vietnam creatively applied Lenin's viewpoint that: "The national liberation revolution in colonies does not necessarily depend on the proletarian revolution in the mother country, but can proactively achieve victory before the proletarian revolution in the mother country." This was a completely new and unique perspective of President Ho Chi Minh and the Communist Party of Vietnam. It was precisely this creative application of Marxist-Leninist theory to the Vietnamese revolution that led to Vietnam's victory in 1945.

Regarding class struggle: During his journey to find a way to save the country, through practical observations in countries across Europe, Africa, America, and even in France, revolutionary Ho Chi Minh concluded that: Capitalism and colonialism are the source of all suffering for workers and peasants in both the "mother country" and the colonies; the French bourgeois revolution, as well as the American bourgeois revolution, were incomplete revolutions; "To save the country and liberate the nation, there is no other way than the proletarian revolution."

However, Ho Chi Minh did not simply copy the theories of Marxism-Leninism into Vietnam, because, according to him, "Marx built his doctrine on a certain philosophy of history, but which history? European history. And what is Europe? It is not the whole of humanity." Therefore, Marxism-Leninism asserts that the class question determines the national question: "If we eliminate the exploitation of man by man, then the exploitation of one nation by another will also be eliminated." But commenting on the unique nature of class struggle in the East, Ho Chi Minh wrote: "Class struggle does not take place in the same way as in the West, because the societies of Indochina, India, or China, in terms of economic structure, are not like Western societies in the Middle Ages or the modern era, and class struggle there is not as fierce as here." "Hearing others talk about class struggle, we also raise the slogan of class struggle, without considering the circumstances of our country to do it correctly." From that, Ho Chi Minh concluded that in Vietnam, class struggle must be linked to the struggle for national liberation on the standpoint of the proletariat.

Regarding revolutionary forces: According to Marxism-Leninism, for a proletarian revolution to succeed, a class alliance is necessary: workers, peasants, and intellectuals. However, President Ho Chi Minh and the Communist Party of Vietnam affirmed that the national liberation revolution "is the common cause of all the people, not just one or two individuals"; "scholars, peasants, workers, and merchants are all united in opposing tyranny"; "workers and peasants are the masters of the revolution," "workers and peasants are the foundation of the revolution"; "the national revolution is not yet divided into classes, meaning that scholars, peasants, workers, and merchants are all united in opposing tyranny"...

In the current context, our Party affirms: "National unity is the strategic guideline of the Vietnamese revolution, and a great driving force and resource in building and defending the Fatherland." National unity, based on the alliance of the working class with the peasantry and the intelligentsia, under the leadership of the Party, is the strategic guideline of the Vietnamese revolution; it is the main source of strength and driving force, and a decisive factor ensuring the sustainable success of the cause of building and defending the Fatherland.

"In the national liberation revolution and in building socialism, President Ho Chi Minh and the Communist Party of Vietnam always creatively applied Marxism-Leninism, and it is this that has led the Vietnamese revolution from one victory to another," emphasized Associate Professor, Dr. Le Thi Thanh Ha.

Creating the strength of the entire nation.

Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen An Ninh argues that the faithful and creative application of Marxism-Leninism is of great importance on the path to building socialism in Vietnam. First and foremost is its strategic orientation for the Vietnamese revolution. Since choosing the "Leninist path," the Vietnamese revolution has continuously achieved great victories and led the entire nation forward in the transitional era towards socialism.

Marxism-Leninism asserts that achieving socialism requires a material basis derived from industrial revolutions and the development of the working class; promoting industrialization and modernization to build the material foundation of socialism in Vietnam, and "building a modern, strong working class"... are fundamental solutions suggested by Marxism-Leninism.

In particular, the creative application of Marxism-Leninism helps to constantly consolidate and develop the leading position of the working class and the people, which the cause of building socialism brings. This is the most sustainable and fundamental link that creates the strength of the entire nation in building socialism.

Associate Professor, Dr. Le Thi Thanh Ha argues that, on the path to building socialism in Vietnam, Marxism-Leninism has always been the ideological foundation and guiding principle for all actions of the Vietnamese revolution. This is because Marxism-Leninism is a system of scientific theoretical and methodological viewpoints, a crystallization and pinnacle of human intellectual achievement and the essence of the culture that humanity has created. Marxism-Leninism is the only doctrine to date that sets the goal and clearly shows the path to the complete liberation of the working class, the working people, and the oppressed nations of the world from enslavement and exploitation, from poverty and multifaceted alienation, bringing about a life of prosperity, freedom, and happiness for humanity.

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