COMMEMORATING THE 70TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE DIEN BIEN PHU VICTORY (07/05/1954 - 07/05/2024)
“The moon's glow dims fallen foes ahead,
As lullabies from mothers drown bombs' dread.
Eroding mountains with each weary stride,
We'll never yield, though our bodies be denied.”
(The Road Ahead - Tien Minh)
When we mention Điện Biên Phủ, we are all familiar with the stories of heroism. Phan Đình Giót sacrificed himself to fill the chasms with sandbags, and the Việt Minh demonstrated their ability to transport artillery through extreme conditions. General Võ Nguyên Giáp’s strategic leadership left an indelible mark.
Seventy years ago, on March 13, 1954, our army fired the first shots at the Him Lam stronghold of the French expeditionary forces - marking the beginning of the 56-day and night unceasing resistance of the Dien Bien Phu campaign. Our army and people fought with resilience, creativity, and courage for 56 grueling days and nights, forging the "world-shaking" victory of Dien Bien Phu. Those 56 days and nights in a remote northwestern Vietnamese valley helped alter the course of 20th-century world history.
General Võ Nguyên Giáp’s rallying cry echoed: ‘The time to fight has come! All units, all soldiers, advance courageously; strive for victory!’ The people devoted their strength to the frontlines, and on May 7, 1954, after enduring rain, hunger, mud, and relentless bombardment, an abrupt silence settled over the Điện Biên cauldron.
With the slogan "Everything for the front, everything for victory", our people devoted all their strength and resources to the campaign. De Castries, the besieged French commander, ordered a ceasefire at 5:30 PM, followed by the maximum destruction of military equipment. The ‘Quyết chiến, quyết thắng’ (Determined to fight, determined to win) flag flew atop De Castres’ bunker, marking the historic triumph. Our forces captured or eliminated 16,200 enemy combatants. Overall, this accounted for 4% of the enemy’s forces in Indochina and 20% of European and African troops. We also seized 28 cannons, 5,915 rifles, 3 tanks, 64 vehicles, 43 tons of communication equipment, 40,000 liters of fuel, and shot down 62 aircraft of various types.
As President Ho Chi Minh wrote: "Dien Bien Phu is like a brilliant golden milestone in history. It marks where colonialism began its slide and disintegration, while the national liberation movement around the world was rising to complete victory." "It is the great victory of our people and also the common victory of all oppressed peoples in the world."
The Dien Bien Phu victory was the convergence of national strength and the spirit of the times, the wise leadership of the Party being the fundamental factor creating Vietnam's strength, the cultural identity of the Vietnamese nation with patriotism as its foundation; those factors continue to be the strength ensuring the success of the cause of building a prosperous, strong, democratic, equitable and civilized Socialist Vietnam.
On the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the Dien Bien Phu victory, the Communist Youth Union of the Faculty of Foreign Languages expresses our deepest gratitude to the preceding generations, those who sacrificed for an entire nation to rise. As students living in peacetime, we are committed to wholeheartedly contributing to society, and building a Vietnam that fills everyone with pride.