Huynh Kim Khanh’s Vietnamese Communism 1925-1945 examines the rise of communism as a political player in Vietnam from 1925-1945. Khanh seeks to show the complex relationships that were present in the molding of this movement. The Indochinese Communist Party (ICP) was bound to two separate entities: the Vietnam people and the Comintern. Khanh argued “to achieve political legitimacy and pursue its social mission, the youthful Communist movement had to constantly maintain a delicate political balance between patriotism and proletarian internationalism.”[i] This was a difficult task that caused many problems for the development of the party. The radicalism of the late 1920’s for an independent state ostracized many of the peasants. By focusing on independence and not the social issues of Vietnam, it left the peasants on the outside of the movement. In the 1930’s however the roles were reversed. The push for social upheaval isolated many of the urban and rural support that was needed to win the struggle. A balance was instrumental for the movement to succeed.
Using mainly primary sources, Khanh tries to show this balance in the framework of the Indochinese Communist Party. He investigated many of the original ICP documents “to avoid being misled or identifying too closely with the subject.”[ii] Although he does credit many of his colleagues with writing beautifully on the subject, he feels that the primary sources paint a much clearer picture. The sources show the triumphs of the party as well as many of the negatives which almost led to the downfall of the party itself.
A central theme that Khanh tries to illustrate is the years before the creation of the communist party. The radical youth of the era had rejected reformism and began pursuing a new political system. A Marxist-Leninist system was introduced that adhered to the principals of the radical youth. Communism had an outlet into Vietnam and became the main political ideology of the time, which still remains today. An important thing to note is the political turmoil that surrounded the time of introduction. The youth of the time were Western-educated and they brought a system that could gather the masses. The Marxist-Leninist system was able to appeal to the majority of people in Vietnam. The peasants and the proletariat would be able to rise out of the oppression of the bourgeois, and the whole country could become independent by ousting out the French.
Upon reading Huynh Kim Khanh’s history of the rise of Vietnamese communism, it shows the struggle that the party endured to rise to power in August 1945. The French were constantly trying to end anti-colonial sentiments throughout Vietnam and almost succeeded in that goal in the early 1930’s. They had arrested most of the key figures and made the movement dormant for almost five years. It was at this time that Ho Chi Minh left Vietnam because he was looked down upon for failing to direct the party. Rumors spread through Vietnam that he was dead. The people thinking he was dead, criticized some of his ideas during this turbulent time
The international hand also played a huge role in shaping the party. The Comintern’s policies caused factions in the party which hindered it from reaching the true goal of independence. This communist movement was created in Vietnam as a means to end colonial rule. Along the way people became tied up in the details of how that goal would be reached. The goals of the proletariat in the international agenda interfered with the goals of independence for Vietnam, causing many setbacks.
It is clear that the idea of class struggle was a key element in the ICP. You cannot deny it or minimize its impact on the political landscape, but it seems that the Vietnam model is different in regards to the social revolution aspect of other communist countries. I say this because of how the ICP eventually pulled the masses together to a common goal. Huynh Kim Khanh emphasizes how class struggle was put on hold by the ICP in 1941 to put their attention on pushing the imperial powers out. In that respect it seems that communism was not the policy that allowed Vietnam to take control of the country in August 1945, but more of a nationalist model. The party put its political agenda on hold to achieve an important step for Vietnam. Nguyen Ai Quoc and other leaders saw that social reform and independence could not be done at the same time. They focused on bringing as many people as they could into the movement and turning their attention to their enemies. By ousting their enemies they could begin to implement their social agenda on a free Vietnam.
2 comments:
One suggestion would be in the first paragraph spelling out the full name of the ICP instead of just using the acronym. This would aid an individual who is perhaps a neophyte in this subject matter. The writer provides some very excellent accounts on the different groups of Communist parties. Another very solid argument provided in the text is the role of the Communist party. The accounts presented in this writing gives some very interesting examples of the rise of the Communist party and some struggles within the party. The writer also provides a great argument for the importance of the Communist party in Vietnam and its fight for Independence against first the French and then the Japanese. After reading the writing the author provides convincing arguments that the Communist party was the sole reason and actor in Vietnam’s fight for independence.
I feel that you have a very strong and well structured text section to your final project. My only suggestion would be to go back through and provide the important details that coincide with the rise of communism. You mention the many negatives that the party faced which almost brought their downfall, but as I read, it isn't really clear what those major struggles were? Possibly elaborate more on that. Also, are there any controversies that the author points out through the reading that could be mentioned regarding to this topic. The majority of your text section is very clear and well written, I would mainly focus on the little details and possibly elaborate on the roles of the prison system and how it was turned into Communistic schools and led to a reformed and more unified Communist party.
Post a Comment