State and Party leaders offered incense to pay tribute to Nguyen Van Linh in his hometown, northern Hung Yen province, on June 29 as part of a ceremony marking the late Party General Secretary’s 100th birthday (July 1).

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung, National Assembly Vice Chairwoman Tong Thi Phong, Head of the Party Central Committee’s Commission of Inspection Ngo Van Du, Head of the Party Central Committee’s Commission for Popularisation and Education Dinh The Huynh, and former Party General Secretary Nong Duc Manh took part in the event, among others.

Nguyen Van Linh, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam from 1986 to 1991, is known as a staunch and reformist leader who strongly promoted the Doi Moi (renewal) process in Vietnam.

Born as Nguyen Van Cuc on July 1, 1915 in Hanoi into a civil servant family, Nguyen Van Linh joined the patriotic movement at the age of 14.

After the national reunification, Nguyen Van Linh served as Secretary of Ho Chi Minh City Party Committee. He was elected Party General Secretary at the 6th National Party Congress in December 1986, and became the first Party leader to lead and organize the implementation of the Party resolution on Doi Moi, which marked a historic turning point in Vietnam’s revolutionary cause.

Nguyen Van Linh was the person who initiated and pursued the principles of Doi Moi while keeping to the socialist orientation, maintaining and promoting the Party’s leadership, respecting and bringing into full play the people’s right to mastery as reflected in the motto “people know, people discuss, people do and people inspect.”

The Doi Moi process has reaped important achievements, creating firm foundations for the country to develop quickly in the following periods.

Linh and the Party Central Committee also devoted great efforts to cleaning up the mechanisms of the Party and State, creating a flow of fresh air to society. His column “Things to be done immediately” on Nhan Dan newspaper won applause from the public for attacking negative phenomena in society, thus creating an open and democratic social atmosphere.

Nguyen Van Linh passed away on April 28, 1998.

He was praised by both the Party and the people as a staunch and prestigious communist and an outstanding student of President Ho Chi Minh

A range of activities will be organized across the country to mark the 100th birthday of the late Party leader to honour his contributions to the Vietnamese revolution.

HCM City voters commend NA officials' transparency

Voters in HCM City yesterday praised National Assembly deputies for their open discussions on shortcomings in criminal procedural activities.

They were attending a meeting with President Truong Tan Sang and the city's National Assembly delegation.

They highlighted socio-economic achievements and also pointed out difficulties in agricultural production, slow administrative reforms and a high rate of public debt.

They asked the Government to adopt measures to stabilise consumption prices, particularly oil, fuel and electricity costs.

They also expressed concern over education reform while admitting it was necessary to provide training to meet the demands of the job market.

In response to voters' concerns about the defence of the sea and islands and protection of Vietnamese fishermen, President Sang said that national sovereignty was sacred.

He said Viet Nam opposed wrongdoing in the East Sea and was carrying out several measures to defend national sovereignty. Sang said the Vietnamese Party and State always supported fishermen to make a living.

"Caring for fishermen is a major focus of Viet Nam's maritime strategy. The National Assembly and the Government have invested several trillion dong to help fishermen build new ships with preferential loans. If their ships are attacked by other ships from China or other countries, they will receive prompt assistance," he said.

President Sang welcomed voters' comments, saying that he himself and other NA deputies treated them with due concern. He asked NA deputies to always express the truth and stand up for people's rights.

VNA