Ten years ago, on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the Dien Bien Phu Victory, we organized a live television broadcast with the theme "From the Thai Nguyen ATK to the Dien Bien Phu Campaign." While preparing the script, Comrade Lo Mai Trinh, Secretary of the Dien Bien Provincial Party Committee, kept reminding us about the appropriate amount of focus on the Muong Pon victory. Unfortunately, within 100 minutes, both the A1 Hill and Tin Keo broadcasts were packed with content... And I promised that when I have the chance, I will write more extensively about the Muong Pon victory in Dien Bien Phu...
Muong Pon, a new rural commune today - Photo: Huu Minh
Our car sped along the smooth, straight Nguyen Huu Tho Boulevard towards Muong Lay. To the left was the newly upgraded Dien Bien airport; to the right, hundreds of excavators were busily dredging the Nam Rom river in preparation for the grand 70th anniversary celebration next month. The rice fields in Muong Thanh were in bloom, their fragrant aroma wafting through the air...
Reporters Nguyen Ngoc, Linh Lan, Xuan Hai, and Hoai Anh from Thai Nguyen Newspaper wondered why the rice plants here seemed small and rather short... I told them: "That's the local variety. The folk rhyme 'First Thanh, second Lo, third Than, fourth Tac' refers to four vast rice paddies, the granaries of delicious rice in Northwest Vietnam..." And so, we followed National Highway 12 from Dien Bien Phu City to Muong Lay town, about 20 km to Muong Pon.
Going back in history, more than 70 years ago, during the fierce days of the protracted resistance war, at the top-secret ATK (Anti-French Resistance Zone) in Thai Nguyen, on November 20, 1953, the Politburo met and decided to launch the 1953-1954 Winter-Spring Campaign. At that time, continuing to implement Nava's plan, the French colonialists deployed paratroopers to completely seize Dien Bien Phu. On December 6, 1953, Conny ordered the French troops to withdraw from Lai Chau; some enemy troops were airlifted back, while others retreated by land. Upon receiving news of the enemy's withdrawal, on December 7, 1953, the Forward Command of the General Staff (at that time located in Tham Pua cave, km15 of the Tuan Giao - Dien Bien road) ordered the 316th Division to quickly send a unit along Route 41 to attack Lai Chau town, while the main force would proceed to Tuan Giao via a shortcut through Pa Phong pass, cutting across the Lai Chau - Dien Bien road to eliminate the retreating enemy forces.
On December 10, 1953, our troops were ordered to attack and liberate Lai Chau. The enemy, heavily defeated in Lai Chau, was forced to retreat to Dien Bien Phu. On the morning of December 12, 1953, Company 674 of Battalion 251, Regiment 174, marched to Muong Pon and discovered a large concentration of enemy troops in the village. The company immediately surrounded them and opened fire, eliminating the enemy. The enemy, supported by aircraft, saw that our forces were outnumbered and resolutely fought back to clear a path for their retreat to Dien Bien Phu.
The soldiers of Company 674 fought bravely and resolutely tightened the encirclement. Signalman Be Van Dan delivered orders to squad leader Chu Van Pu, at a time when Pu's squad, now down to only four men, was fighting off an army unit descending from the highlands.
One machine gun was unusable because its gunner had died, and Chu Van Pu's machine gun was also unusable because there was no place to mount it... Faced with this fierce situation, Be Van Dan rushed forward, lifted the two gun legs onto his shoulders, and urged his comrades to fire. Chu Van Pu hesitated, but Be Van Dan said, "The enemy is in front of us. If you care about me, shoot them all dead!" Comrade Pu gritted his teeth, squeezed the trigger, and unleashed a barrage of bullets towards the enemy, causing them to panic and flee. The enemy's counterattack was broken. Be Van Dan bravely sacrificed himself, his hands still tightly gripping the gun legs on his shoulders.
The fierce battle of that day remains vivid in the memories of present and future generations, like the song praising his life: "Oh, Be Van Dan!/A thousand years from now you will still live on/Your homeland is a green forest/The oranges of Muong Pon surround your grave, red with ripe rice/Golden rice fields on the old battlefield of Muong Thanh/Children are singing praises to you"...
Mr. Be Ich Tien, a Russian translator for Thai Nguyen Radio and Television Station, is from the same family and hometown of Cao Bang as the heroic martyr Be Van Dan. He once told me: "The elders in my hometown recount that Cao Bang and the entire Viet Bac region were then liberated zones, so the victory at Muong Pon and the heroic sacrifice of Be Van Dan's squad – a 21-year-old Tay man from my hometown – quickly spread throughout the region. Thousands of young people eagerly went to fight and serve in the Dien Bien Phu battlefield, driven by the desire to liberate the Northwest and avenge Be Van Dan..."
Meanwhile, General Be Xuan Truong, the current Chairman of the Vietnam Veterans Association, when serving as Commander of Military Region 1, spoke about his fellow villager, martyr Be Van Dan: Born into a poor family with a revolutionary tradition, his father was a miner, his mother died early, and he grew up participating in guerrilla activities. In January 1948, he volunteered to join the army and participated in many campaigns.
Be Van Dan always upheld the spirit of courage, actively overcoming all difficulties and hardships, resolutely and accurately carrying out all directives and orders promptly, and excellently fulfilling the assigned tasks. The victorious Battle of Muong Pon, on the eve of the Battle of Dien Bien Phu, was like a triumphant and confident battle cry...
For his exceptionally outstanding achievements, on August 31, 1955, Be Van Dan (1931-1953) was posthumously awarded the title of Hero of the People's Armed Forces and the Second Class Military Merit Order by the National Assembly... The Muong Pon victory site is associated with the name and resting place of the heroic martyr Be Van Dan, along with the achievements of Company 674, Battalion 251, Regiment 174, located within the glorious Dien Bien Phu Victory historical site complex...
Muong Pon commune has undergone many changes. Infrastructure, income, and the living standards of the people are improving day by day. The average per capita income in 2023 reached over 27 million VND/year. Roads have been paved with concrete. Focusing on mobilizing people to develop livestock farming, manage and protect forests, and plant trees... to increase income and stabilize people's lives is a priority for the Party committee and government of Muong Pon.
Mr. Quang Van Lo, an 80-year-old man of the Thai ethnic group, is the one who has most clearly felt the changes in Muong Pon. “Back then, Muong Pon only had a few dozen households, but now it’s densely populated, with over 100 households. My village, Muong Pon 1, is now well-developed, the economy is thriving, and we have access to clean water in every house. Every household also raises livestock. I hope my children and grandchildren will continue the traditions of their ancestors and make Muong Pon commune even more prosperous,” Mr. Quang Van Lo said.
Looking at the beautiful, prosperous scenery of Dien Bien, Muong Pon, Muong Phang today, I suddenly remembered a few lines of poetry by To Huu.
" Brothers and sisters!"
Falling on the battlefield
The blood of our brothers and sisters, our blood, was not shed in vain.
The rice fields of Vietnam will be lush and green.
Muong Thanh, Hong Cum, Him Lam
"The apricot blossoms are white again, the orange grove is yellow again."
HUU MINH
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