The sustainable value of Ho Chi Minh Thought on equal rights between men and women, and women's liberation

Dr. PHUNG THI AN NA
Institute of Leadership and Public Policy,
Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics

When discussing inequality between women and men, Marxism - Leninism believes that economic origin is the most profound cause leading to this phenomenon. Since society was divided into classes and oppression and exploitation appeared, women have always been in the lowest position in society and are the most oppressed of all the oppressed. Marxism - Leninism has clearly shown that the origin of women’s inferior place compared to men in the family and society is due to economic inequality, which has led to the domination of men over women and gender inequality has arisen. F. Engels wrote: “The unequal status between the two sexes, handed down to us by previous social relations, is not the cause but the result of economic oppression of women”⁽¹⁾.

Along with economic causes, the classical Marxist - Leninists also pointed out that cultural and social traditions (outdated customs and practices) that are strongly encouraged by religion and firmly protected by bourgeois law are also very basic sources of inequality between men and women, increasing the burden of oppression on women. VI. Lenin wrote: “Up to now, ... religious marriages are still prevalent. Women have to suffer like this because of the influence of the priests, etc”.⁽²⁾. They also emphasized that women themselves, with their resignation, patience, and lack of understanding, make gender inequality worse in capitalist society. Thus, among the many causes leading to inequality between men and women, according to the classic thinkers, economic causes play a decisive role and are considered the deepest root.

From the material reality of the Vietnamese, Ho Chi Minh put a strong emphasis on cultural and ideological origins. In 1952, while the resistance war against the French colonialists was in a difficult and challenging stage, on International Women’s Day, March 8, he wrote the article “Equality of Men and Women”, affirming that the root cause leading to extreme inequality for women in Vietnam is “Because valuing boys and looking down on girls is a habit of thousands of years. Because it is deeply ingrained in the minds of everyone, every family, and every social class”⁽³⁾.

Does Ho Chi Minh’s emphasis on ideological and cultural factors “go against” Marxist views on the origin of gender inequality? Absolutely not. Because it was Ho Chi Minh who correctly applied the viewpoints and philosophical principles of Marxism - Leninism to affirm the sustainable value of Marxism - Leninism. In Marxist - Leninist philosophy, there is a specific historical perspective, and they also believe that applying the common laws of human history to the historical conditions of each country and nation requires appropriate modifications. Karl Marx, Engels, or V.I. Lenin never considered their theory to be the ultimate, pinnacle of humanity but still needed inheritance, supplementation, and development. As an excellent student of Karl Marx, Engels, and V.I. Lenin, Ho Chi Minh creatively applied the principles of Marxist - Leninist philosophy to the specific historical conditions of Vietnam, showing that, Marxism - Leninism is not a forced application of strange and foreign ideas but a solid foundation for the Vietnamese revolution to inherit and develop. Ho Chi Minh stated: “In any case, it is impossible to prohibit supplementing the “historical basis” of Marxism by adding documents that Marx in his time could not have. Marx built his theory on a certain philosophy of history, but which history is it? European history. What is Europe? That is not the whole of humanity”⁽⁴⁾.

Thus, for Ho Chi Minh, Marxism - Leninism is the scientific basis, the guiding theory and the task of communists is to constantly supplement and complete the theory of Marxism - Leninism. Ho Chi Minh added to the theoretical system of Marxism the rich “materials” of Oriental studies, and vivid “practical data” of Vietnamese history to help Marxism “adapt” to the Vietnamese revolution.

Obviously, in Vietnam, with the characteristics of a nation that has undergone many wars to defend the country, including a history of “a thousand years of Northern domination”, with the “indigenous” customs and habits of a wet rice agricultural civilization and especially the way of thinking heavily influenced by Confucian doctrine, inequality and equal rights between men and women cannot be considered to solely stem from economic causes. Ho Chi Minh identified cultural and ideological origin as the “key” factor in the issue of equality between men and women in our country. The ideology of “respecting men over women”, and deep gender stereotypes about the role and position of Vietnamese women are still basic barriers that make the implementation of gender equality difficult, just as he commented: “That is quite a big and difficult revolution”⁽⁵⁾.

When visiting a cadre training class composed mostly of men, Ho Chi Minh strongly reminded that: “There are so few female cadres, which is a shortcoming. The comrades in charge of the classes are not interested in training female officials. This is also a common shortcoming in the Party. Many people also underestimate women’s abilities or are prejudiced and narrow-minded. This is very wrong viewpoint. I hope that comrades will truly correct the disease of prejudice and narrow-mindedness towards women”⁽⁶⁾.

Ho Chi Minh’s views on the ideological origins, prejudices, and perceptions that lead to inequality and equality between genders do not contradict the views of Marxism, because Marxism affirms that economic origin is the deepest root, not the only one leading to this phenomenon. Ho Chi Minh’s emphasis on the cultural and ideological origins of the phenomenon of gender inequality in Vietnam is the inheritance, supplementation, and renewal of Marxism in the specific historical conditions of a country or nation. It is the creative application of Marxism - Leninism, a clever combination of Marxism - Leninism with traditional values of the nation and the quintessence of human culture.

Regarding measures to realize equal rights between men and women, according to Marxism - Leninism, the path, and conditions to liberate women and realize gender equality in practice - that is the path of social revolution to eliminate the economic roots from which all inequalities in society arise, including inequality between men and women, in which private ownership must be replaced by social ownership; Women must participate more and more in social work. F. Engels wrote: “The prerequisite for women’s liberation is to help all women return to participate in social production, and this in turn demands that the individual nuclear family as an economic unit of society be abolished”⁽⁷⁾.

At the same time, it is necessary to reorganize the division of labor in society and the family to reduce the family burden on women by socializing part of the household work. It is also necessary to legislate the goal of equality between men and women, equality between husband and wife. Confirming this, F. Engels wrote: “The character of the husband’s domination over the wife in the modern family and the necessity of establishing true social equality between the two, as well as the method of establishing such equality, it will only become completely clear once both husband and wife are equal before the law”⁽⁸⁾.

Like Karl Marx and F. Engels, V.I. Lenin examined the situation of women being oppressed, exploited, and gender inequality from their deep economic, social, and cultural causes. According to him, reforming the entire society to liberate all oppressed and exploited workers is also the path to liberating women.

V.I. Lenin said that to permanently eliminate inequality, great efforts are needed from the Party, the State, and all of society, but first and foremost is the effort of women themselves, “the liberation of working women... must be the work of the working women themselves”⁽⁹⁾. The first thing that must be done is: “If we want to liberate women, want to make them truly equal with men, we must have a common economy in society, and we shall let women participate in the common productive labor force. Only then will women have equal status with men”⁽¹⁰⁾.

According to V.I. Lenin, achieving equal rights for women is not only recognized in documents but must also be implemented in practice. An effective and prompt measure to eliminate the gap between “legal equality” and “equality in real life” was also identified and determinately pursued by V.I. Lenin during his time as leader of the Soviet Party and State. These measures included: “... increasingly involving female workers in the management of public enterprises and state administration”. With the implementation of this measure, V.I. Lenin firmly believed that: “...Women will learn quickly and catch up with men”⁽¹¹⁾.

Inheriting and applying the viewpoint of Marxism - Leninism, Ho Chi Minh affirmed that to liberate women and realize equality between men and women, it is necessary to raise social awareness to repel gender prejudice; The Party and the State must be responsible for implementation and women themselves must strive to rise up.

Ho Chi Minh pointed out that the ideology of prioritizing men over women is a deeply ingrained habit in the thinking, mind, consciousness, and lifestyle of every person, in every family, in every social class. Therefore, an ideological revolution is needed, through campaigns, education, persuasion, etc., to eliminate gender stereotypes and build positive and progressive ideas for everyone. In particular, prejudices against women need to be eliminated promptly to allow women to achieve equality with men. Ho Chi Minh stated clearly: “Liberating women, while at the same time destroying feudal and bourgeois ideologies in men”⁽¹²⁾. He also repeatedly affirmed: “We make revolution to fight for equal rights, where boys and girls have equal rights”⁽¹³⁾.

To realize equality between men and women, he pointed out that party committees and authorities at all levels “must have training and assistance methods to further improve the status of women”⁽¹⁴⁾. He asserted that liberating women involves laws, policies, and specific measures: “From now on, when assigning work to women at all levels, the party and local authorities must base it on each person’s qualifications and need to actively help women more”⁽¹⁵⁾. Along with setting guidelines and policies, according to Ho Chi Minh, the Party and the Government must also create favorable conditions for women to participate in productive labor, protect their health, reduce the burden of household work for women, and at the same time, have training and fostering plans for women to maximize their abilities: “The Party and the Government need to have practical plans to train, promote and help more women to take charge of all tasks, including leadership roles. Women themselves must strive to advance. It is a revolution that brings true equality to women”⁽¹⁶⁾.

Regarding women, Ho Chi Minh also pointed out their limitations: “Our women still have some weaknesses such as confusion, lack of confidence, low self-esteem, and lack of trust in their abilities; On the other hand, women also face many difficulties regarding affairs of family and children”⁽¹⁷⁾. To overcome these shortcomings, Ho Chi Minh reminded women “not to rely on the Party or the Government but must be determined to study, develop initiatives, believe in their abilities, enhance the collective spirit and solidarity to help one another to solve all the difficulties of women in government work”⁽¹⁸⁾.

He also asked women to “improve the spirit of self-reliance, strive to study and learn; must eliminate conservative thinking and low self-esteem; must develop the spirit of self-strength and independence”⁽¹⁹⁾. In society, there still exists the phenomenon of looking down on women, not valuing women, not recognizing women’s abilities, and even being prejudiced and narrow-minded towards them. Therefore, according to Ho Chi Minh, women themselves must be aware of the struggle: “If you do not struggle, male comrades who are prejudiced against women will not actively correct themselves”⁽²⁰⁾.

When it comes to gender prejudice, most of it comes from men, however, reality shows that women themselves also have gender prejudice, prejudice against their own gender, low self-esteem, contentment, resignation, a lack of trying to rise up, a lack of striving, etc. Therefore, Ho Chi Minh repeatedly advised women: “We must eliminate the mentality of inferiority and dependence; must have the will to be strong and independent; We must continually raise our political, cultural, and technical levels”⁽²¹⁾.

Ho Chi Minh’s ideology of fighting for women’s liberation demonstrates its greatness in that it predates the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) approved by the United Nations on December 18, 1979, demonstrating his vision beyond his era. For President Ho Chi Minh, the idea of liberating women and realizing equality between men and women has become a revolutionary ideal, not only demonstrating his political consciousness and compassion, but also demonstrating his cultural values and communist humanitarianism.

Taking Marxism - Leninism and Ho Chi Minh Thought as a guideline for action, our Party has inherited, applied, and developed the doctrines and ideas of classicists in the work of promoting gender equality in Vietnam. In the 1930 Political Platform of the Party, it was clearly stated that “equality between men and women is one of the 10 essential tasks of the Vietnamese revolution”. Ho Chi Minh’s ideology and the Party’s viewpoint on equal rights for men and women are expressed and recognized in Article 9 of our country’s first Constitution in 1946: “Women have equal rights with men in all aspects”.

During the renovation period, our Party has concretized its gender equality perspective with resolutions and directives on women’s affairs such as Resolution No. 11-NQ/TW dated April 27, 2007, of the Politburo “on women’s affairs in the period of promoting industrialization and modernization of the country”; Conclusion Notice No. 196-TB/TW dated March 16, 2015, of the Secretariat on “Project of strengthening the Party’s leadership in gender equality and for the advancement of women in the new situation”.; Directive No. 21-CT/TW dated January 20, 2018, of the Secretariat “on continuing to promote women’s affairs in the new situation”, etc.

The guiding viewpoint on gender equality work is consistently expressed from the Party’s first political platform to all subsequent Party Congresses. Documents of the 13th National Party Congress clearly emphasized: “Promoting the traditions, potential, strengths, spirit of mastery, and desire to rise up among women of all classes; Building the new era of Vietnamese women; Improving the quality of female human resources, meeting the requirements of sustainable development and international integration. Strengthening development programs and supporting updating knowledge and skills for women in difficult circumstances, ethnic minorities, and in the mountainous areas. Completing and effectively implementing laws and policies related to women, children, and gender equality. Resolutely and strictly handling social evils, acts of violence, trafficking, and abuse of women and children”⁽²²⁾. At the same time, “Implementing synchronously and comprehensively solutions for youth development, gender equality and for the advancement of women. Gradually reducing the gender gap in the fields of politics, economics, culture, society, and family”⁽²³⁾.

Under the Party’s leadership, the State and the Government have constantly improved the policies and legal system regarding gender equality to narrow the gender gap in all areas of social life, gradually helping women access and fully enjoy all the achievements of development. Vietnam’s achievements in gender equality are the most obvious proof of the Party’s correct policies and guidelines that have inherited, applied, and creatively developed the views of Marxism - Leninism and Ho Chi Minh ideology on gender equality and women’s liberation.

Thus, in the process of leading the Vietnamese revolution, President Ho Chi Minh and our Party always paid special attention to carrying out the task of liberating women and realizing equality between men and women. Under the Party’s leadership, Vietnamese women become the owners of the country, have equal rights protected by law in all fields, and are given favorable conditions to develop, thereby making a great contribution to the cause of construction and protection of the Fatherland.

To meet the requirements of sustainable development of the country, continue to enhance the role and position of Vietnamese women, and contribute to the successful implementation of the millennium goal of gender equality, it is necessary to continue to research and creatively apply Ho Chi Minh Thought on women’s liberation to the current work of promoting gender equality, so that Vietnamese women are worthy of President Ho Chi Minh’s assertion: “Vietnam’s mountains and rivers are woven and embroidered by our women, young and old, to make them more beautiful and brilliant”⁽²⁴⁾.

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Received: September 15, 2023; Revised: October 8, 2023; Approved for publication: October 18, 2023.

l Endnotes:

(1), (7), (8) K.Marx and F.Engels: Complete works, vol.21, National Political Publishing House, Hanoi, 1995, p.115, 116, 118.

(2) V.I. Lenin: Complete works, vol.37, National Political Publishing House, Hanoi, 2005, p.221.

(3), (5) Ho Chi Minh: Complete works, vol.7, National Political Publishing House, Hanoi, 2011, p.342, 342.

(4) Ho Chi Minh: Complete works, vol.1, ibid., p.509-510.

(6), (13), (16), (20) Ho Chi Minh: Complete works, vol.15, ibid., p.275, 260, 617, 275.

(9) V.I. Lenin: Complete works, vol.39, ibid., p.232.

(10) V.I. Lenin: Complete works, vol.42, ibid., p.230.

(11) V.I. Lenin: Complete works, vol.40, ibid, p.182-183.

(12), (15), (17), (18) Ho Chi Minh: Complete works, vol.12, ibid., p.301, 640, 640, 640.

(14), (21) Ho Chi Minh: Complete works, vol.13, ibid, p.260, 59.

(19) Ho Chi Minh: Complete works, vol.14, ibid., p.313.

(22), (23) CPV: Documents of the 13th National Party Congress, vol.I, National Political Publishing House, Hanoi, 2021, p.169, 271.

(24) Ho Chi Minh: Complete works, vol.7, ibid., p.340.