"Follow the Party to the last drop of blood."

"We have begun marching to fight in Laos... the march was full of hardships, carrying heavy loads, marching day and night, and traveling long distances, but I think my life must be filled with honor and pride as a heroic Vietnamese person, I must stand firm against the enemy and march forward to repay the gratitude I owe to the Party and beloved Uncle Ho... so I must follow the Party to my last drop of blood," these are the diary entries of a Vietnamese volunteer soldier in Laos, preserved at the Vietnam Military History Museum.

Báo Quân đội Nhân dân•02/09/2025

According to information gathered by historical researchers, the diary belongs to a Vietnamese volunteer soldier who died in Laos. His name may have been Ly Ngoc Thinh.

In the notebook, there was a page with different handwriting, probably recorded by his comrades: "Born in 1946. Cao Lan ethnic group. Father was a Party member... Tuyen Quang . Very kind. His fighting motivations were very correct. Pure soul. High revolutionary enthusiasm. Trusted and loved by officers and soldiers. Brave in battle. Died while conferring with the platoon deputy during an extremely difficult situation..."

This page is from the diary.

Reading the diary, we can feel the sense of responsibility and honor of the revolutionary soldier when the country is in danger, ready to sacrifice himself to protect the independence and freedom of the Fatherland and the happiness of the people: "A communist party member must know how to choose a path that is worthy of living and worthy of dying. Even if one only lives 20 years, it is better than living a hundred years in vain. To live a great life, to die gloriously. My life and my existence have been spent directly taking up arms to kill the enemy to protect the independence and freedom of the Fatherland and the territorial sovereignty of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam. Therefore, as a young man living in the army, I must determine my ideology, have a high fighting spirit, have a firm ideological stance, and be ready to accept heavy tasks and sacrifice for the Fatherland."

Besides entries expressing faith in the leadership of the Party and President Ho Chi Minh during the all-out, nationwide resistance war, and showing heartfelt affection for the people of the South being trampled by the enemy, the diary also contains pages expressing pure international sentiments.

On December 13, 1968, his platoon set off on a mission in Laos. He wrote: "We have begun our march to fight in Laos. Before going, I had already determined my mindset and high fighting spirit. Specifically, the march will be full of hardships, carrying heavy loads, marching day and night, and traveling long distances. But I think my life must be filled with honor and pride as a heroic Vietnamese person. I must stand firm against the enemy and push forward to repay the kindness of our beloved Uncle Ho and the Vietnamese people. Therefore, I must follow the Party to the last drop of blood. The Vietnamese people and the Laotian people are one."

The Vietnamese revolution and the Laotian revolution are one. Our homeland and our friend's are one, so I am very enthusiastic about going on international missions. I don't calculate sacrifice or reward, even if I sacrifice myself in Laos, it is for the people, for the homeland, for the common revolution of the Vietnamese and Laotian nations. The people of Laos and Vietnam must unite to fight the Americans to liberate their nations and for the progress of humanity... "Over the four days of December 25, 26, 27, and 28, 1968, I fought at Pha Thi. Bombs and bullets shook the earth, but my determination, even if it meant sacrificing my life in battle, was to remain wholeheartedly loyal to the people of Laos and Vietnam. It's better to die at Pha Thi than to be enslaved. Pha Thi is an important area of the Laotian battlefield, so the enemy also attacked to use Pha Thi as a springboard to attack Laos." That place is also very important, so even if we have to fight and sacrifice ourselves, we will not let Pha Thi be lost."

The last entry in the diary reads: "Am and Thinh went to the battalion's summary meeting in Hoi Ma village and confided in each other about their families, wives, and children. They shared a deep affection for each other. Although they were not born of the same parents, their hometowns were separated by rivers and mountains, yet they had to cross many mountains to meet. From then on, Thinh and Am confided in each other, becoming close friends, trusting and helping each other, and progressing together to complete their work. My dear, even though our health is limited, for the Party and the people, we must complete our mission and return to our homeland as we swore: 'I promise to leave, I will not return to my homeland until the American enemy is defeated'" (January 24, 1969).

The diary reflects both the unwavering spirit and the pure, noble internationalist sentiments of a revolutionary soldier: "Hearing the distant sound of gunfire carried on the wind today, news of victory... my heart remembers the soldiers, the beloved fighters who overcame so many hardships, who went to liberate their homeland, loving the people, the villages like their own children, cherishing their kind parents, the people loved and cherished them on their journey, old mothers brought gifts, but he refused them. 'Brother, who are you that you hide your name, your age, your homeland? I want to ask you, the villagers want to ask you, but you don't want to say, you just smile, you smile for a long time, then you say you are Laotian but from a faraway land... Brother, people say you are Vietnamese, because you carry a common enemy, and a shared proletarian internationalist love, that you went to fight, is that true, brother? You are a communist from Vietnam, oh how beautiful the communists of the past, I didn't fully understand, brother, now I have the pleasure of meeting you, the soldiers..." "Soldiers came here to kill the common enemy, united by proletarian internationalism, and set out to fight, contributing to the victory of liberating the South."

This diary, written during the years 1968-1969 – a particularly fierce period of the resistance war against the US – is a self-bound notebook, measuring 9cm x 12cm, very convenient to carry in a pocket. Only half of the cover, made of cement paper, remains; the writing is faded, and some words are illegible. The notebook served as both a diary and a notebook. Its content is very diverse, including records of meetings, studies, and resolutions. One page lists the platoon's allowance for January 1969. The first few pages contain several songs: three Vietnamese songs, two Laotian songs, and a Vietnamese translation of the Internationale. Of the two Laotian songs, one is recorded as a vocal track, and the other as a Vietnamese translation (e.g., "Hearing the Sound of Gunfire in the Distance").

Text and photos: NGUYEN ANH THUAN

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Source: https://www.qdnd.vn/nuoi-duong-van-hoa-bo-doi-cu-ho/theo-dang-den-giot-mau-cuoi-cung-844450