40 YEARS OF LOYALTY BESIDE THE PRESIDENT
Major General NGUYEN VAN CUONG
Head of the Mausoleum Management Board, and Commander of President Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum High Command
On September 02, 1969, President Ho Chi Minh - the great leader of our Party and nation, a dedicated soldier in the communist and international workers' movements, the Hero of the Liberation of the Vietnamese People, and an outstanding cultural figure, bid farewell to us, leaving countless regrets for the entire Vietnamese people and international friends. His life, career, and thoughts live on with the present generation and countless generations to come.
In line with the national tradition of "When you drink water, think of the source," with boundless love and gratitude for President Ho Chi Minh, the Party and the State had decided to preserve his body permanently and build a mausoleum for him, allowing present and future generations of Vietnamese people to visit, learn, and forever follow the path chosen by the Party and President Ho Chi Minh.
After 40 years of preserving President Ho Chi Minh’s body and 34 years of opening the mausoleum to welcome fellow countrymen and international guests, the officers, workers, and soldiers of the President Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum High Command have overcome numerous difficulties and challenges, excellently fulfilling the special political mission entrusted by the Party, State, army, and people. President Ho Chi Minh’s body is well-preserved; his distinctive features from his lifetime are kept intact. The Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum in Ba Dinh Square has been renovated and embellished to be increasingly elegant and clean, warmly welcoming people and international guests who come to visit President Ho Chi Minh. This reflects deep and lasting gratitude for his immense contributions to the people and the country.
The process of construction and development of the unit was a journey of persistent and resilient efforts, overcoming numerous difficulties and challenges with silent achievements. During the years of the resistance war against the United States, national salvation, the officers and soldiers of Unit 69 (the former unit of the President Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum High Command) stood side by side with Soviet experts, overcoming many challenges to preserve, maintain, and ensure the safety of President Ho Chi Minh's body. Particularly after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the unit faced an extremely difficult period, full of hardships and challenges, as the non-repayable assistance from the Soviet state for the construction of the Mausoleum was no longer available. However, this challenging period also provided an opportunity for the unit to step by step rise to the task of preserving President Ho Chi Minh's body. Following the guidance of the Political Bureau, the Prime Minister, directly from the Central Military Commission and the Ministry of National Defense, and the Party Committee, the President Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum High Command formulated various strategies and leadership measures to promote the spirit of independence, self-reliance, proactive innovation, and the implementation of significant and sustainable tasks which satisfied both emergency demands and long-term sustainability. With appropriate steps, leveraging accumulated experiences and effective cooperation with domestic scientists and Russian experts from the Moscow Biomedical Research Center, the unit gradually became a master in the long-term preservation of President Ho Chi Minh’s body. Incorporating the advice of Russian experts, they swiftly invested in building the capacity of Institute 69, gradually becoming self-sufficient in the medical care and preservation of President Ho Chi Minh's body. Meanwhile, the focus is on training and supplementing personnel, equipment and collaborating with domestic research institutions, and implementing numerous projects at the national, ministerial, and institutional levels, while also organizing experimental research. In addition to total dependence on foreign assistance, the unit successfully mastered the processes of producing regular and large-scale medicines for the preservation of President Ho Chi Minh’s body, serving both regular and unexpected visitations while ensuring absolute safety. Notably, in 2004, the unit proactively prepared in all aspects, collaborated with Russian experts and successfully produced a special solution in Vietnam for the large-scale preservation work in 2004. This historical milestone marked a remarkable leap in the unit's growth, affirming its ability to gradually take control of the task of long-term preservation and the absolute safety of President Ho Chi Minh's body.
To contribute to the successful implementation of the long-term medical mission for President Ho Chi Minh’s body, the unit focused on gradually taking control of the entire technical equipment system of the Mausoleum. In 1990, most of the technical equipment systems of the Mausoleum and related constructions had deteriorated, requiring replacement and repair. Despite the lack of assistance and expert support, the unit proactively overcame all difficulties. On the one hand, effectively managing and exploiting the old equipment system, and on the other hand, leveraging internal resources, collaborating with specialized experts in military and civilian research institutions, step by step replacing key equipment with modern technologies to meet the development requirements of the mission. Many technical innovations and process optimizations were efficiently applied, contributing to energy savings, reducing operational and maintenance costs, extending the lifespan of equipment, increasing the redundancy factor, and being ready to serve well in cases of floods, power outages, and other emergencies.
In parallel with medical preservation and technical tasks, ensuring security and ceremonial duties are also given special attention. The unit has timely detected and addressed security violations in the area, protection regulations violations and ensuring absolute safety for the Mausoleum; major national events, ceremonies, and festivals held in the area of the Mausoleum and Ba Dinh Square have been successfully organized.
Ceremonial work has been developed since the opening of the Mausoleum and has been supplemented and improved over the years. To enhance the quality of ceremonial work to meet national standards, the Command has researched, reported, and received government approval, starting from May 19, 2001, to ceremoniously raise the flag daily in front of the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum. This is a meaningful activity contributing to the education of national pride, the responsibility of each citizen to the country, and the profound connection with the sacred symbol of the nation and its leader, Ho Chi Minh.
Regarding reception and propaganda tasks, the unit closely coordinated with the Mausoleum Management Board, the Ba Dinh Historical and Cultural Complex, gradually improving service quality, creating favorable conditions for people and international visitors to visit President Ho Chi Minh, organizing political activities, and sightseeing in the area. In recent years, the number of domestic and international visitors to President Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum has increased, with over 30,000 people a day, but they have all been received safely, attentively, and thoughtfully. Since the opening of the Mausoleum, the unit has welcomed more than 40 million visitors, including nearly 7 million foreign visitors from over 160 countries and international organizations. The unit has hosted more than 1,400 political and cultural events at President Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum. Especially from 2003 to now, the unit has proactively collaborated with localities to welcome many delegations of Heroic Vietnamese Mothers, families with revolutionary contributions from southern provinces or remote and far-reaching areas to visit President Ho Chi Minh. At Da Chong Monument area, in recent years, the unit has welcomed tens of thousands of visitors to commemorate Uncle Ho and explore the historical site, contributing to educational efforts and effectively promoting the campaign “Studying and Following the shining Moral Example of President Ho Chi Minh”.
In line with its proud and entrusted duties, the unit has consistently placed great importance on and successfully carried out political education, ideological work, and the construction of a clean and strong Party organization linked to building a comprehensive, strong unit. It has closely combined education, training, and raising awareness of Marxist-Leninist ideology, Ho Chi Minh's thoughts, the Party's path and viewpoints, ensuring that every officer, worker, and soldier has a purely political nature, absolute trust in the Party's leadership, loyalty, dedication, and a connection to the long-term preservation mission, ensuring the absolute safety of President Ho Chi Minh’s body. The Party Committee and the Mausoleum High Command have focused on training and building a team of officials with high moral and professional qualities, with strong and sustainable leadership capabilities. Despite facing numerous difficulties and challenges over the 40-year journey, the unit's officers, workers, and soldiers have built a tradition of “Unleashing the Power of Filial Piety, Solidarity, Self-Reliance, and Proactive Creativity”
For their outstanding achievements in recent years, the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum High Command has been awarded the Ho Chi Minh Medal and the First-Class Independence Medal. Two units, Institute 69 and Unit 195, were honored with the titles of Hero of Labor and Hero of the People's Armed Forces. Particularly, on December 22, 2004, the Party and State bestowed the President Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum High Command with the prestigious title of Hero of the People's Armed Forces during the renovation period.
The unit's success is attributed to the continuous attention and guidance from the Party and State, with direct involvement from the Central Military Party Committee and the Ministry of Defense. There has been close coordination with various forces within the Management Board of the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, the Ba Dinh Historical and Cultural Complex, as well as support from central agencies and experts from the former Soviet Union (now Russian experts). The unit also acknowledges the caring assistance from local Party committees, authorities, and people nationwide.
Entering a new stage of the revolution, to fulfill the heavy and glorious task entrusted by the Party, State, army, and people, every officer, worker, and soldier in the entire unit continues to elevate the spirit of self-reliance, harness internal strength, and proactively innovate in carrying out their missions. It is necessary to expand cooperation with scientific research institutions at home and abroad, enhance the quality and effectiveness of scientific research, perfect fundamental theories and experiments related to medical preservation tasks. The goal is to become a master in ensuring the long-term preservation and absolute safety of President Ho Chi Minh's body. The unit is committed to the safe operation of the technical equipment system, the replacement, and innovation of technical equipment systems with modern and energy-efficient technologies, the dignified elevation of the architecture of the Mausoleum and the monuments in Ba Dinh Square, ensuring security, and absolute safety for the construction. Additionally, the unit will provide convenient and thoughtful services for people and international guests visiting President Ho Chi Minh, commemorating heroes and martyrs, and touring the Da Chong Monument area. The unit will also continue to build a strong, comprehensive unit according to regular standards, setting an example for the Party building, maintaining strong political purity, leading the formation of the unit with a strong and lasting bond, contributing to the overall success of the Party, the people, and the military in implementing the campaign "Studying and Following the shinning Moral Example of President Ho Chi Minh" to preserve the everlasting legacy of President Ho Chi Minh and the revolutionary ideology and morality.
