SENIOR GENERAL VO NGUYEN GIAP REMEMBERS

Journal of Third World Studies, Fall 2003 by Currey, Cecil B

Question: What happened after your arrival in Ha Noi?

Answer: Once settled in the city, I continued to read, to study by myself and to do different small jobs in order to survive. I obtained the first part of the French baccalaureat. When I knew classes for free lance candidates were open in the Lycee Albert Sarraut, I applied. I was a bright student, and gained a first in philosophy. I rapidly obtained the second part of the baccalaureat.

Question: What happened then?

Answer: I found a job at the private Lycee Thang Long where I taught history and literature. At the same time I applied to take courses at the Faculte de Droit at the University of Ha Noi. I was very interested in political economy and sought to learn that subject. Every day, in order to get to the Lycee Thang Long I had to walk down Trang Tien Street and at one of the intersections pass by a news bulletin board.

One afternoon in May 1936, while on my way to school, I saw on the news bulletin board a notice concerning French politics. In France, the "Front Populaire" composed of ten political organizations or so, among them the communist and socialist parties, forming the nucleus of the Front, had won at general elections. Immediately I decided to take advantage of these propitious circumstances for our anticolonialist movement, by publishing a newspaper. It would be a political tool for me and my group.

On 6th of June 1936, two days after Leon Blum, the new French prime minister, took his oath of office, I began the newspaper Hon tre tap moi (Soul of Youth, new edition). This was only possible with the help of friends. Some teachers at Thang Long put their savings together to purchase the publishing rights of Hon Tre (Soul of Youth) and nearly went bankrupt doing so. This transaction saved us from a great deal of time, preventing us from the colonial administrative fuss connected with seeking a license for a newspaper to be published in the Vietnamese language.

Hon tre tap moi was practically the first newspaper in Viet Nam to promote democracy, to claim amnesty for political prisoners and to approve of the French Front Populaire. The newspaper was a success. There were not even enough copies printed to satisfy the number of readers. But, on the fifth issue, French authorities insisted on closing down our newspaper.

To get around these colonial administrative difficulties, I and my group decided to publish a newspaper in the French language. Thus on 16th of September 1936, Le Travail was born. I was its editor in chief. In late 1936, just released from jail, Truong Chinh joined me [Chinh was a longtime member of the Politburo and a communist functionary]. Soon thereafter Pham van Dong also came to work at Le Travail [Dong was also a Politburo member and long time communist functionary].

Question: General Giap, it sounds as if you were making real progress in your efforts to undermine French colonial government. Am I correct?

Answer: Yes and no. On 16th April 1937 I received orders from the French Resident stopping all publication of Le Travail. I had published thirty issues of the paper. That was its whole life over its seven months of existence. They were exciting and productive for me. On one occasion, for example, I made a three hundred kilometer rough trip ride on my bicycle from Ha Noi to Cam Pha in order to write a report on some striking miners.