In part 12 of the Ho Chi Minh series, Laura Lam details how Lenin and the October Revolution inspired the young Ho Chi Minh.
>>Part 1: Paris, my two worlds
>>Part 2: A journey in search of freedom
>>Part 3: Nguyen the Patriot
>>Part 4: Indochina and little emperors
>>Part 5: The rise of patriotism
>>Part 6: Finding a compass
>>Part 7: Young Ho Chi Minh with Grand Chef Escoffier
>>Part 8: Young Ho Chi Minh in America
>>Part 9: Ho Chi Minh versus Albert Sarraut
>>Part 10: The path of destiny
>>Part 11: Moscow’s resolution on Indochina
There was a natural affinity between Lenin’s socialist revolution and the struggles for the liberation of the colonies in the 20th century. Russia and the repressed Peoples of the East shared a common interest and fought against two common enemies of the time – capitalism and imperialism.
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| Vladimir Lenin |
Without Lenin’s initiative, which had a profound impact on international relations, there would not be the emergence of the many independent states of Asia, Africa and Latin America. He interpreted into action the theories of Marx and made a foundation of ideas and ideals for the new anti-imperialist coalition. Most of the world’s ‘freedom fighters’ in the twentieth century began as left-wing radicals, inspired by ideas out of Russia. Until late in that century mutual trust was strong between Russia and those who sought the freedom of their countries.
Lenin was born in 1870, the son of a Russian nobleman. His mother was the daughter of a land owning physician. Excelling in his studies, he read widely, his favorite authors being Goethe and Turgenev - influences that would remain throughout his life.
His father died from an illness in 1886. The following year his brother, Alexander, was hanged in St. Petersburg for plotting to assassinate Tsar Alexander III. Lenin renounced the political system of his time and also its religion. Socially he was ostracized for having a dead revolutionary brother. Three months after being accepted to Kazan University to study law, he was expelled for attending a peaceful protest organized by the students against the imperial regime. He continued to study law on his own and passed the graduation exam as an external student at St. Petersburg University in 1891. He was ranked first in a class of 124 law students.
Lenin practiced law for a few years in the Volga River port of Samara, mostly dealing with land-ownership cases, from which he gained political insight into the socio-economic condition of the peasants. In 1893 he moved to St. Petersburg and became involved in revolutionary propaganda. Soon he founded the League of Struggle for the Emancipation of the Working Class and was active among the Russian labor groups.
In December 1895, Lenin was arrested for plotting against Tsar Alexander III and was imprisoned for fourteen months in solitary confinement. Two years later he was sent to eastern Siberia for exile, where he learned about Marxism. In 1898 Lenin married the socialist activist Nadezhda Krupskaya. The following year he published his first book, “The Development of Capitalism in Russia”. He eventually published thirty theoretical works. This became the teaching of Marxism-Leninism.
Lenin lived in Europe from 1900 to 1917, spending time with exiled revolutionaries in Munich, Prague, Vienna, Manchester and London. He moved to France in 1908 and in 1911 he set up a training school in the village of Longjumeau, a southern suburb of Paris, while building his underground political organization, the Bolsheviks.
In March 1917 Tsar Nicholas II abdicated and a provisional government was formed by Alexander Kerensky, who was a leader of the Socialist opposition to the imperial regime. However, as Prime Minister, Kerensky was increasingly unpopular. He wanted Russia to stay in the First World War against the will of the Russian people. He also denied the peasants the ownership of land.
In April 1917 Lenin and his party departed from Paris for Berlin. From Germany they traveled in a sealed train to Petrograd (new name for St. Petersburg). Lenin led an uprising against Kerensky but failed and he escaped to Finland. In mid October, Lenin returned to Petrograd secretly from Finland. The Bolsheviks quickly seized power and Kerensky escaped. The Soviet government was formed and Lenin became head of state.
The October Revolution inspired the young Ho Chi Minh and gave him fresh hope for Indochina. Without reservation, he left London and moved to Paris to join Phan Chu Trinh and members of his group. Trinh had served a prison term at La Santé three years earlier for underground revolutionary activities while living in exile.
On foreign policy of the new Soviet Republic, Lenin often drew attention to the important role of the Soviet state in helping the oppressed nations. He stressed, “Our Soviet Republic must now muster all the awakening peoples of the East and, together with them, wage a struggle against international imperialism.”
The very first document of the Soviet state was the ‘Decree on Peace”, attacking the system of colonial domination. It defined annexation as “every incorporation of a small or weak nation into a large or powerful state without the precisely, clearly and voluntarily expressed consent and wish of that nation”. The Decree referred not only to Europe but also to “distant, overseas countries”
Lenin instructed his followers, “The main thing is to respect the people. Explain our position of selfless friendship, non-interference in the internal affairs of the country as opposed to the acquisitive and plundering policy of the imperialists. That is your job.”
For the Peoples of the East, it was the first time in their history that they found a true ally and the opportunity to be treated with respect by a major country. Despite limited resources and possibilities, the Soviet Republic was offering direct economic aid and other material assistance, including arms and military advisers, to the nations struggling for liberation.
Such support became crucial for Ho Chi Minh while he was searching for a strong ally to help end France’s domination. The alliance has held a very special place in the relationship between the two countries until the current day.
Professor Harish Kapur at the Graduate Institute of International Studies in Geneva has called Soviet policy towards the colonial world “revolutionary” and “straightforward”. “Such a policy,” he said, “was obviously free from all the confines and trappings of classical diplomacy”.
Prime Minister Nehru of India said to the Russians, “Almost contemporaneously with your October Revolution under the leadership of the great Lenin we in India started a new phase of our struggle for many years.... Even though we pursued a different path in our struggle under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi we admired Lenin and were influenced by his example.”
Before his death in 1969, Ho Chi Minh was interviewed by L’Humanite and he emphasized the significance of Lenin’s ideas, commitment, and contribution to the national liberation movement. He said, in the eyes of the Peoples of the East, Lenin was more than a leader. He was a man of immense magnetic force. His contempt for luxury, the purity of his personal life, his simplicity and his noble heart attracted the people’s sincerest feelings and nothing could interfere with this attraction.