Fighting against and refuting wrong views that negatively impact the building of a new social consciousness

ASSOC.PROF., DR. NGUYEN THI NGA
Institute of Philosophy, Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics
Dr. DO THI VAN HA
Hanoi University of Mining and Geology

1. Building a new social consciousness in Vietnam

Material and spiritual life are two indispensable aspects that coexist in social life. Between them there is connection, impact, reciprocity, and enrichment of each other, but they can also inhibit each other in the process of social development. A new social consciousness as an important part of spiritual life, if well developed and promoted, can be transformed into resources, strength, and motivation for economic development and social stability, contributing to building and protecting the Fatherland. In the process of successfully building socialism, in addition to focusing on economic development and building the material foundation, it is crucial to pay attention to building a new social consciousness, creating a spiritual foundation for society.

The new social consciousness in Vietnam “is the totality of good ideas, opinions, emotions, moods, traditions, etc., of the Vietnamese national community, with the core being Marxism - Leninism, Ho Chi Minh Thought, the Party’s guidelines and policies, the State’s policies and laws, reflecting the basic interests of the people to serve the cause of building and protecting the new society”⁽¹⁾. The new social consciousness in Vietnam originates from the revolutionary consciousness of the proletariat, conceptualized in the theory of Marxism - Leninism; it inherits humanistic social thoughts, promoting the development of the broad working people, and creatively applies Marxism - Leninism in the context of Vietnam, combined with Ho Chi Minh Thought.

The 7th National Party Congress (1991) affirmed: “The Party takes Marxism - Leninism and Ho Chi Minh Thought as the ideological foundation and guideline for action”⁽²⁾. At the 13th National Party Congress, one of the five lessons learned by our Party during the term of implementing the Resolution of the 12th National Party Congress and also the leading guiding principle in implementing the reform policy in the coming period is: “Consistently persevering, applying and creatively developing Marxism - Leninism and Ho Chi Minh Thought”⁽³⁾.

From the perspective of social psychology, social consciousness is the emotions, moods, habits, lifestyle, thinking, customs, practices, desires, aspirations, beliefs, etc., of the Vietnamese national community into the revolutionary cause, the Party, the State, the social regime, the changes in daily life, etc. The social consciousness of the Vietnamese national community today is also the result of the process of consolidating and arousing the spirit of patriotism, pride, self-respect, strong will and aspirations of the nation, the spirit of solidarity and consensus of the community, and the people’s faith in the Party, the State, the socialist regime, and the aspiration to develop a prosperous and happy country, etc.

Looking from the perspective of social consciousness forms, building a new social consciousness in Vietnam is also about building and cultivating political consciousness, legal consciousness, moral consciousness, etc., for the people in society.

From the perspective of class and nationality, the new social consciousness in Vietnam is the revolutionary consciousness of the Vietnamese working class and national community, formed and developed in the struggle against the old regime to build a new society. It is the inheritance of the nation’s good traditional values, reflecting the interests of the national community, and continues the noble social thought from throughout the human history.

It cannot be denied that spirit, ideology, belief, and aspiration are important factors that create determination and will, and are the premise and basis for unified, strong, and effective action. Reality shows that, in the Vietnamese revolutionary cause, it is the desire for unity, independence, freedom, happiness, and the unwavering belief in the Party, in Uncle Ho, and the revolutionary path that have become the spiritual resources, creating strength for our nation to defeat invaders, unify the country and build a new society.

With that spirit, the new social consciousness is an important component, contributing to the orientation of political ideology, cultural values, ethics, etc., in the spiritual life of the Vietnamese national community. Not only does it play an important role in spiritual life, but from another perspective, social consciousness also becomes a special resource, an endogenous driving force for the nation, creating strength in the process of protecting, building, and developing the country.

Professor Joseph Nye, the originator of soft power theory, said about Vietnam that: in fact, Vietnam won over two major empires by two wars in the twentieth century thanks to “soft power”. Although the opponents had superior weapons and economic power, Vietnam overcame and received the support of international friends thanks to the “soft weapons” of righteousness, desire for independence, unity, and patriotism⁽⁴⁾. The 13th National Party Congress affirmed: “Strongly arouse the spirit of patriotism, the will of national self-reliance, the strength of great national unity and the desire to develop a prosperous and happy country”⁽⁵⁾.

2. Identifying the destructive rhetoric of hostile forces exerting a negative impact on building a new social consciousness in Vietnam

Distorted arguments aimed at denying the correctness, science, and revolution of Marxism - Leninism and Ho Chi Minh Thought.

To deny the correctness, science, and revolution of Marxism - Leninism, Ho Chi Minh Thought - the theoretical basis of Vietnam’s political ideology and socialist ideology, hostile forces have spread many false and distorted allegations. Specifically, Marxism is a product of the 19th-century mechanical industry and cannot be applied to modern science and technology on a global scale today; Marxism - Leninism was born from the socio-economic conditions of the 19th and early 20th centuries, so it is no longer suitable with current practice; Marxism is a product of Western industry, incompatible with Eastern and Vietnamese culture; The collapse of the socialist model in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe is clearest proof of the errors and illusory nature of Marxism - Leninism; Ho Chi Minh Thought takes Marxism - Leninism as its foundation, therefore, Ho Chi Minh Thought cannot be applied to Vietnam⁽⁶⁾, etc.

From those false arguments, hostile forces argue that it is impossible to take Marxism - Leninism and Ho Chi Minh Thought - doctrines that have become outdated, only suitable for the 19th and 20th centuries, especially Marxism is only suitable for Western civilization, etc., as the foundation for the political ideology of Vietnam - an Eastern country in the 21st century.

Arguments distorting the correct guidelines and policies of our Party and State in the cause of building socialism.

Using many methods, hostile forces deny the correctness of the path to socialism in our country today. They argue that the Communist Party of Vietnam takes Marxism - Leninism and Ho Chi Minh Thought as its ideological foundation, is “conservative” in maintaining the path to socialism is “against the rules” and “inappropriate with the new era”, etc.

Taking advantage of negative phenomena and potential instability problems in social life; The complex nature of the transition period includes the intertwining and coexistence of the old and the new, the good and the bad; Taking advantage of the deterioration of political ideology, ethics, lifestyle, manifestations of embezzlement, corruption, bureaucracy, alienation from the people of a part of officials, party members, etc., hostile forces have denied all the great achievements we have achieved in more than 35 years of carrying out the country’s renovation.

While both the political system and the Vietnamese people are fiercely implementing anti-corruption work, these activities are distorted by hostile forces into “internal factional purges”, “internal strife” and so on. Many viewpoints in the Party’s documents were also distorted. They distort the issue of “arousing the desire to develop a prosperous and happy country” as being subjectively idealistic, empty, unrealistic, and unscientific⁽⁷⁾, etc.

These sabotaging arguments not only aim to distort the correctness, science, and revolutionary nature of the Party’s theory but also defame and lower the reputation of the Party and the State; causing disunity in the community and the population, eroding the people’s faith in the Party’s leadership and in the revolutionary cause. This situation has been summarized as follows: “The dangerous nature of these methods and tricks is that they create false perceptions, ambiguity, doubt, confusion, and fluctuations, causing “self-evolution”, “self-transformation” internally, shaking the confidence of cadres, party members and people in the Party’s leadership role and the State’s management, creating frustration and opposition in society”⁽⁸⁾. This negatively affects the process of building a new social consciousness in Vietnam at many levels, both in terms of theoretical consciousness as well as common social consciousness.

3. Some solutions to fight back against sabotage and distortion of hostile forces exerting negative impact in building a new social consciousness in Vietnam

In the current context, building a new social consciousness is a particularly important task, including fighting against the false claims made by hostile forces and protecting the Party’s ideological foundation. This is both a long-term and an immediate, resolute task. To effectively implement this task, it is necessary to focus on the following solutions:

Firstly, building a new social awareness in Vietnam today needs to be associated with building a new economy, new culture, and new people, gradually realizing the aspiration to develop a prosperous and happy country. That is the most important foundation to negate the wrong and distorted views of hostile forces and to strengthen trust among the people.

Marxist - Leninist epistemology clearly states that to discern whether cognition, thought, theory, or human viewpoints are correct or false, and reflect objective reality or subjective idealism, one must rely on practice - the only objective standard to test the truth. Since only practice can materialize knowledge and actualize thought, thereby proving and testing whether those perceptions and instructions are correct or incorrect. The assessments and directives in the Party’s documents can be recognized for their correctness and scientific nature through their application in the process of social transformation.

In fact, after the pandemic, Vietnam’s economic growth rate in the first quarter of 2022 increased significantly, reaching a GDP of USD92.175 billion, an increase of 5.03% over the same period last year, higher than the growth rate of China (4.8%) and Singapore (3.4%)⁽⁹⁾. In addition, Vietnam’s human development index (HDI) continuously increased in the United Nations rankings (from position 128/187 in 2011 to position 117 in 2020)⁽¹⁰⁾. The political system as well as the Vietnamese community continuously strive to develop the country and its people, achieving great successes, and the country’s stature has been significantly raised. Specific achievements gained in various fields during the process of building and developing the country are powerful evidence containing great strength, refuting distorted allegations, dispelling skeptical views, thereby solidifying the Party’s ideological foundation.

Secondly, directly attacking to refute wrong and hostile views and protect the Party’s ideological foundation

It is necessary to have direct confrontational articles, with vivid evidence, strong arguments, and convincing approaches to refute the false and distorted allegations of hostile forces, affirming the correctness, science, and revolution of Marxism - Leninism and Ho Chi Minh Thought. The 13th National Party Congress affirmed: “Continue to strongly innovate the content and methods of ideological work in a proactive, practical, timely and effective direction; enhance combativeness, education, and persuasion in propaganda and learning about Marxism - Leninism, Ho Chi Minh Thought, the Party’s viewpoints and guidelines, and the State’s policies and laws”⁽¹¹⁾.

Currently, in many newspapers, magazines, radio and television programs, have established periodic sections and columns to publish articles exposing the nature of the arguments and viewpoints of hostile and reactionary forces that conducted propaganda aimed at sabotaging the Party’s ideological foundation, against the Party, the State, and against the cause of building socialism in Vietnam. These practical activities have been highly impactful, creating positive influences in shaping public opinion at home and abroad. In addition, there is a need to intensify efforts to handle the dissemination of fake and malicious news on social networking sites such as Facebook, YouTube, TikTok, etc. The work of fighting against wrong and hostile views, repelling ideological and moral degradation needs to be performed regularly. In that struggle, it is necessary to maximize the role of the people to refute false, hostile allegations and protect the revolutionary cause.

Thirdly, it is necessary to effectively conduct public propaganda and education, and provide timely and effective official information both domestically and internationally, thereby limiting the negative impact of false, distorted information and narratives of opportunistic and hostile forces.

Developing a prosperous and happy country and building a prosperous life for the people is a long-term process and a central goal in the revolutionary process. Despite great achievements, the country’s renovation process still has some shortcomings and limitations. Therefore, it is necessary to firmly grasp the ideological situation, process information, and orient public opinion in a timely manner, to prevent opportunistic and hostile elements from exploiting it or distortion and subversion. It is necessary to make full use of the internet and social networks, diversify forms of education, and propaganda, encouraging of patriotic emulation movements, highlighting of good people, good deeds, and positive factors in all fields of social life.

Accurate and proactive forecasting is needed to grasp the situation of public opinion, timely handle information, and guide social opinion, ensuring unity of thought within the Party and consensus in society, etc. Proactively provide accurate, objective, and properly oriented information to prevent and combat the “peaceful evolution”, as well as bad, toxic information on the internet and social networks.

Fourthly, legal measures should be applied in the struggle to protect the ideological foundation and build a new social consciousness.

Institutionalize the Party’s viewpoints, supplement, and improve legal regulations related to preventing and combating bad and toxic information on social networks, protecting national security and social order, and promoting the Cyber Security Law are an important legal basis to prevent and fight against hostile forces and protect the Party’s ideological foundation. Strictly handle cases in accordance with the Party’s regulations and the State’s laws against press agencies and reporters who publish information that has not been verified, has no basis, and causes negative impacts on public opinion.

Building a new social consciousness in Vietnam is a long-term process of both “building” and “fighting”, in which, fighting against wrong views is one of the basic solutions, an indispensable content for building a new social consciousness in Vietnam. This is a special struggle that requires the active and proactive participation of all subjects, with the core being the Party, the State, and Party Committees at all levels, at the same time the strength of great national unity is indispensable, as General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong affirmed: “Protecting the Party’s ideological foundation is not a private matter of the Party but is also a common matter, a common responsibility of the entire Party, the entire people, and the entire army”⁽¹²⁾.

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Received: July 11, 2023; Revised: August 12, 2023; Approved for publication: August 24, 2023.

l Endnotes:

(1) Marxist - Leninist Philosophy Textbook used for advanced training in political theory, Political Theory Publishing House (2021), pgs. 307-308.

(2) CPV: Platform for building the country in the transition period to socialism, Publishing House, Hanoi, 1991, pg.21.

(3), (5), (11) CPV: Documents of the 13th National Party Congress, vol.I, National Political Publishing House, Hanoi, 2021, pgs. 95, 110, 181.

(4) Promoting national soft power from national cultural values, https://tuyengiao.vn.

(6) Tran Van Phong: Identifying types of wrong and hostile views today, https://hcma.vn.

(7) Criticizing false allegations and distortions of the issue of “arousing the desire to develop a prosperous and happy country” in the Documents of the 13th National Party Congress, lyluanchinhtrivatruyenthong.vn.

(8) Nguyen Xuan Thang: Ideology, theory with innovation and national development, National Political Publishing House, Hanoi, 2021, pg.469

(9) Vietnam’s economy makes a breakthrough after the pandemic, https://baochinhphu.vn.

(10) Building a comprehensive and inclusive social policy system, https://tapchibaohiemxahoi.gov.vn.

(12) Speech by comrade Nguyen Phu Trong at the Conference summarizing Propaganda work in 2019, People’s Army Newspaper, December 30, 2019, pg.1.