The memorial services started on 9:00am with theparticipation of CPV Central Committee General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong,Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Acting President Dang Thi Ngoc Thinh, andPresident of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Central Committee Tran Thanh Man, anda number of former national leaders, among others.
The Lao delegation to the event was headed by ThonglounSisoulith, member of the Lao People’s Revolutionary Party’s Politburo and PrimeMinister of Laos
Meanwhile in Ho Chi Minh City, the memorial service for formerParty General Secretary Do Muoi was attended by Nguyen Thien Nhan, Politburomember and Secretary of the HCM City Party Committee, leaders of the city andrepresentatives of ministries, sectors, organisations and southern localitiesas well as a large number of locals.
Delivering the eulogy at the ceremony in Hanoi, PartyGeneral Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, head of the funeral board, highlighted thatComrade Do Muoi was an excellent and prestigious leader of the Vietnamese Party,State and people who devoted his whole life to the national liberation andsocialism goals of the country.
His passing is a great loss to the Party, State and peopleof Vietnam, his family and international friends, said Trong.
Comrade Do Muoi, (birth name is Nguyen Duy Cong) was born onFebruary 2, 1917 into a poor family in Dong My commune, Thanh Tri district,Hanoi. He joined revolutionary activities in 1936 and became a Party member inJune 1939. In 1940, he was arrested and sentenced to 10 years in jail. Heserved his sentence at Ha Dong and Hoa Lo Prisons in Hanoi. Despite beingbrutally tortured by the enemy, he was resolutely loyal to the Party, thenescaped from the prison and resumed his operation.
In the two resistance wars against French and US enemies, Comrade Do Muoi heldmany positions, including the Secretary of the Party Committees of Ha Dong, HaNam, Nam Dinh, Ninh Binh and Hoa Binh provinces, and Deputy Secretary of theParty Committee and Vice Chairman of the Administration and ResistanceCommittee; Political Commissar and Commander of the Joint Zone III; PoliticalCommissar of the High Command of the Red River’s Left Bank Region; Secretary ofthe Party Committee and Chairman of the Administration and Resistance Committeeof Hai Phong city; head of the 300-day regional steering committee; vicechairman of the central council for front support and anti-blockage of HaiPhong port. He directly directed the building of a secret oil pipe system fromLang Son to southern battlefields, which served as a key system contributinggreatly to the Spring Victory in 1975 that led to the south liberation andnational reunification.
After peace resumed, Comrade Do Muoi held many importantpositions such as Deputy Minister, then Minister of Domestic Trade; Chairman ofthe State Pricing Committee; Minister of Construction; Chairman of the BasicConstruction Committee; Deputy Prime Minister in charge of basic construction,industry and materials, industrial and commercial reform, and distribution inmany tenures; Chairman of the Council of Ministers (now Prime Minister) from1988 to 1991; Permanent member of the CPV Central Committee Secretariat; andNational Assembly Deputy for the 2nd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th tenures.
In tough days of the 90s, he and leaders of the Party and Statedesigned and directed the implementation of comprehensive reform policies,making a breakthrough of historical significance of the country, whileproposing socio-economic development programmes to switch from a centralised, bureaucratic and subsidy economyto a market andsocialism-oriented economy, along with effective solutions to controlinflation.
He proposed the presentation of the title of Vietnam HeroicMothers, and the local democracy regulations. Amidst the situation when thecountry suffered from surrounding and embargos, Comrade Do Muoi madesignificant contributions to the normalisation of diplomatic relations withother countries in the region and the world, making Vietnam a member of ASEAN,while actively expanding the foreign relations and international integration.
As the Chairman of the Council of Ministers, he strictly andpromptly realised policies and orientations of the Party, especially those onnational industrialisation, heading to an independent and self-reliant economy.
From June 1991 to December 1997, as the Secretary of the CPVCentral Committee and Secretary of the Central Military Commission, with hisdiverse practical experience, Comrade Do Muoi and other leaders of the Partyled the country through many challenges to continue reform policies as well asnational construction and defence, and complete all tasks assigned by theParty, State and people.
As a veteran revolutionary official who grew up through the wars and nationalconstruction and defence, he upheld the spirit and characteristics of acommunist and sacrificed the whole life for the nation and people, whilecontinuously improving his knowledge and showing his great resolution in alljobs, said General Secretary Trong.
As one of the key leader of the Party, in any position, he gave many importantideas for major issues of the country, while always paying attention to Partybuilding and corruption fighting, he added.
His life is a mirror for people, officials and soldiers tofollow, he stressed.
Through his 101 years of life and 80 years of Party membership, he devoted thewhole life to the Party and people. He was presented with many noble orders,including a Gold Star Order, an insignia of 80-year Party membership, and manyother noble orders and medals of Vietnam and other countries.
Showing deep sentiments towards Comrade Do Muoi, Party General Secretary Trongpromised, together with the whole Party, people and armed forces, to continuefollowing the revolutionary path chosen by the Party, President Ho Chi Minh andelder generations, including Comrade Do Muoi, while being persistent to theMarxism-Leninism and Ho Chi Minh thoughts, the ideal of national independenceand socialism, stepping up the comprehensive reform for the target of buildinga Vietnam with rich people, strong country, and democratic, fair and civilisedsociety.
The Party General Secretary also extended his deep sympathyto the family of Comrade Do Muoi over the great loss.
On behalf of Comrade Do Muoi’s family, his son Nguyen Duy Trung expressed hisgratitude for incumbent and former leaders of the Party, State, Government, theVietnam Fatherland Front, officials of agencies, organisations, localadministrations, foreign officials, the people as well as relatives for theirsympathy.
With their great grief, incumbent and former leadersof the Party, State, Government, the Vietnam Fatherland Front, officials ofagencies, organisations, local administrations, and the people went around thelate Party leader’s coffin for the last time to bid farewell to the leader, whodevoted his life to the struggle for national liberation and the nationalbuilding, safeguarding and renewal cause.
The burial ceremony will take place from 1pm the sameday in his native land in Dong My commune, Thanh Tri district, Hanoi.-VNA