UNESCO heritage recognition sought for Ho Chi Minh’s writing

      A narration completed in 1961 by the late President Ho Chi Minh is to be submitted to UNESCO for recognition as a World Documentary Heritage.
The Ho Chi Minh Museum is compiling a file on “Vua Di Duong Vua Ke Chuyen” (Telling a Story While Travelling), which the president first wrote under the name T Lan while on his way to the northeast of the country to direct the “Bien Gioi” (Border) campaign against French troops in 1950.
The museum’s director Chu Duc Tinh said that considering the criteria for documentary heritage under the UNESCO’s World Memory programme, his staff are confident the proposal will be recognised.
The compilers aim to receive recognition in time for the 120th anniversary of the president’s birthday.
The writings covered important events during the president’s more than 30 years of revolutionary work from when he left the country for France in 1911 until the success of the August Revolution against French rule in 1945.
Much of the typed script, which has been carefully edited by researchers, covers President Ho Chi Minh’s working style and his thrift, such as in his use of the blank side of printed sheets and the back of pages torn from calendars for writing.
The work was considered to be more than of literary value because it covered historical events. With its high degree of accuracy, it was reliable material for research on President Ho Chi Minh’s revolutionary work.
Pham Sanh Chau, head of External Culture and the UNESCO Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said the script’s uniqueness made it eligible for consideration.
The work, first published in the “Nhan Dan” (People) newspaper in 1961, was published as a book in 1963 and has since been reproduced many times.
The original script was stored in the Presidential Palace from 1961-1969 before being transferred to the museum.
Tinh said the carefully compiled file has precise details of various values and the inspiration it gave future generations.
The file will also highlight the work’s international significance as required by the criteria for nomination as a World Memory’s Documentary Heritage title.
The museum will invite specialist to help complete the file. The compilers aim to submit their final file within a month to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.
The file, complied with support from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and National Archives Department, will then be sent to the Government for approval.