The general who won the people's hearts.

(QBĐT) - Lieutenant General, Associate Professor, Doctor Nguyen Duc Hai (born 1957), from Mai Thuy commune (Le Thuy district), was formerly the Director of the Institute of National Defense Strategy, Ministry of National Defense . With deep affection, on the occasion of the 113th anniversary of the birth of General Vo Nguyen Giap (August 25, 1911 - August 25, 2024), he expressed his feelings and thoughts about the General through the article "The General of the People's Hearts".

Military genius

Born on the tranquil banks of the Kien Giang River, General Vo Nguyen Giap rose from a history teacher to become a military genius, a master of the art of people's warfare. His talent, intellect, virtue, and character will forever be etched in the history of the nation, enduring in the hearts of the Vietnamese people and international friends.

He was a legendary general, a master of strategy and military art, especially in the people's war doctrine. In important campaigns, the General always demonstrated decisiveness and sharpness with exceptional military thinking: proposing and organizing a comprehensive, all-out people's war and protracted resistance; thwarting the total war strategies of powerful empires in the 20th century. He distilled valuable lessons from national and world history, and summarized the practical combat experience of our army.

Lieutenant General, Associate Professor, Doctor Nguyen Duc Hai.

At crucial moments, the General made accurate decisions: organizing "independent companies and concentrated battalions," crushing the French colonialists' attack on Viet Bac (1947); changing the target of the attack on Cao Bang to Dong Khe (Border Campaign 1950); dispersing the French mobile main forces to concentrate on destroying the Dien Bien Phu stronghold (Winter-Spring 1953-1954)...

During the war against the US, the General directed the construction and protection of strategic land and sea transport routes to support the South; advised on launching the Route 9-Khe Sanh campaign; contained the enemy's mobile forces in Tri-Thien, creating conditions for the Tet Offensive and Uprising of 1968; directed the Air Defense-Air Force Command to defeat the strategic air offensive of the US imperialists (1972); struck at Buon Ma Thuot (1975), forcing the enemy to withdraw from the Central Highlands; directed the campaign to liberate Hue-Da Nang, the Spratly Islands...

General Vo Nguyen Giap's strategic genius lay in the art of deceiving and luring the enemy, proactively forcing them to fight according to our tactics. A prime example is the shift from the "quick attack, quick victory" to the "steady attack, steady advance" strategy in the Dien Bien Phu campaign, which, according to the General, was "the most difficult decision in my commanding career." This contributed to minimizing casualties among soldiers while still achieving a victory that resonated throughout the world. He also seized the historical opportunity with the command "speed, even more speed; boldness, even more boldness," creating a powerful combined force to launch a fierce attack on the enemy's last stronghold in the historic Ho Chi Minh Campaign (1975), leading to the complete victory of the resistance war against the US.

General Vo Nguyen Giap was not only a brilliant military leader, but also a profound military theorist of Vietnamese military doctrine in the Ho Chi Minh era (on arming the revolutionary masses; building the People's Army; on armed uprisings...). The General was the "architect" of the people's war strategy, a military art built on the foundation of "national unity, the entire people fighting the enemy," admired by the whole world. Professor Pierre Aselin of the University of Hawaii Pacific (USA) said: "... General Vo Nguyen Giap was a military genius; his brilliance helped Vietnam defeat the invading forces. Even when the French forces clearly had far greater resources than General Giap's army ..."

Live on in the hearts of the people

Every Vietnamese citizen and member of the People's Armed Forces holds the talented and virtuous General Vo Nguyen Giap in high esteem. The General has passed away, but Lieutenant General, Associate Professor, and Doctor Nguyen Duc Hai still vividly remembers the last moments spent with him. General Hai recalled:

“It was early afternoon on October 6, 2013, when I, along with other leaders and commanders of the National Defense Academy, went to house number 30 Hoang Dieu Street, where the General and his family lived, to offer incense. The first impression was incredibly moving: people from all walks of life and the armed forces lined up in a long queue all the way to the National Assembly building... silently and sorrowfully offering incense. The people of Hanoi voluntarily organized stations providing free water and bread. We stood in that line, feeling the sacred affection of countless Vietnamese people for the General, as if we ourselves had lost a close relative.”

“It was a great fortune and honor for me to stand among the ranks of generals standing vigil beside the coffin of the General, witnessing delegations of Party and State leaders, international friends, and the people successively bowing respectfully before the spirit of this brilliant general of a heroic nation. Most touching was the affection of the veterans and severely wounded soldiers from various periods, many of whom are elderly, using crutches or wheelchairs… remembering and cherishing the General.”

A cultural performance paying tribute to General Vo Nguyen Giap at the 20th anniversary celebration of Dong Hoi City.

“An unforgettable memory: on the night of October 12, 2013, I received notification from the Ministry of National Defense: As a son of Le Thuy, Quang Binh, you were assigned the task of accompanying the General on a special flight to his final resting place in his homeland of Quang Binh.”

“After the memorial service, the General's coffin moved through the main streets, past Ba Dinh Square, the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, before passing by the General's house at 30 Hoang Dieu Street. Throughout the journey to Noi Bai Airport, countless people shed tears, holding portraits of the General, tearfully bidding him farewell. Noi Bai Airport was also silent, thousands of eyes focused on a man about to depart… The coffin of General Vo Nguyen Giap was carried by the honor guard onto an ATR-72 aircraft, flight number VN103, named after the General's age; the Funeral Committee and the General's family traveled on an Airbus 321, flight number VN1911, named after the General's year of birth… heading towards Dong Hoi Airport.”

“At 1:00 PM on October 13, 2013, the coffin of General Vo Nguyen Giap arrived at Dong Hoi Airport. The clouds in Quang Binh that day seemed to stop to bid him farewell. Throughout the 70km journey by car to Vung Chua-Dao Yen, crowds of people from all over the country gathered with the people of Quang Binh, lining both sides of the road to bid farewell to a son of the homeland who dedicated his life to the Party, the Fatherland, and the people. The “General of the people’s hearts” rests peacefully amidst the sacred mountains, the endless white clouds, and the shores of the East Sea, where waves have crashed for millennia. The General returns to the place of his childhood memories, bathing in the Lao wind and white sand. He transforms into the sweet, melancholic, and poignant melody of the “Ho Khoan Le Thuy” folk song… merging with the cool, green waters of the Kien Giang River of yesteryear.”

Thanh Long (compiled)

Source: https://www.baoquangbinh.vn/dai-tuong-vo-nguyen-giap/202408/vi-tuong-cua-long-dan-2220519/