A great brain has stopped thinking

It really is painful to see such a great figure pass away.

But it does not hold true if we consider the place Kiet’s thoughts have in the mind of the people.

Moreover, he developed his thoughts after a lifetime of serving and studying his country.

A leader can pass away but the people are immortal.

The people can forever foster and develop any thought they’ve adopted.

For those who knew Vo Van Kiet, his most notable characteristic was his strong attachment to the development of the nation.

This love of his country helped him make breakthroughs when he was the party chief of a newly-liberated city and when he was the leader of a government faced with difficulties.

He could make the breakthroughs because he listened to the people’s opinions and initiatives and checked the real impact of every policy on the people.

Vo Van Kiet never liked to talk theories, not because he looked down on them, but because he believed that only reality could give birth to good policy.

He was a man of action – not impulsive action but action born out of thorough contemplation after listening carefully to the people and experts.

Being well aware of his mission to the people, Vo Van Kiet strove to meet and talk to many people from all walks of life from all over the country, with colleagues in the leading ranks, with scholars, educators, scientists, economists, business people and artists.

He met them not only as a prime minister but also as a friend who could listen, learn and share.

As a result, he accumulated a vast bank of knowledge which was essential in helping him fulfill his responsibilities.

Some policies he made as a prime minister are considered turning points the country’s history as they established the economic and social foundation in the Doi Moi (reform) era.

Even after stepping down from the post of prime minister, Vo Van Kiet had had no idle moments until he suddenly passed away.

He attracted the people with his clear thinking and dynamism in all situations, as well as his strength and creativeness, even at a very senior age.

Many people who worked with him expressed their surprise at his stamina.

He read a lot and took notes for further contemplation and research.

He also listened attentively to anyone he talked to in order to really understand them and acquire new knowledge.

Vo Van Kiet never imposed monologues on listeners or “granted” his thoughts to them.

There were only open discussions seeking truths.

He never minded frank debates but he was also patient and tolerant.

“Anyone can be too angry at one time or another. They may not know all information so their way of thinking and responses could be unilateral. We must provide them with information so all Vietnamese can be united and make their contributions,” Kiet usually said so to his colleagues when they met with overseas Vietnamese.

As a result, Kiet could make many friends, old and young, both at home and abroad.

They always felt at ease meeting him.

Farmers in the Mekong Delta could comfortably present to him their plans.

People of Dao ethnic in the mountainous province of Lai Chau asked him to be an honorable member of their cooperative and considered him a relative.

During a recent trip to the central Vietnamese provinces which were devastated by storms and floods, he visited a poor laborers’ area to ask them in detail about their living conditions.

Afterwards, he asked some sociologists to survey the living conditions of workers in industrial parks and work out proposals he could forward to responsible agencies.

Anyone who talked with him was encouraged to speak their opinions and thoughts, which in turn enriched his own thinking and helped him keep up with the changing times.

An overseas Vietnamese exclaimed after meeting him recently that he was so happy because Vo Van Kiet’s thinking “is still dynamic and imbued with both traditional and modern trends.”

He met with many Asian and world leaders, some of whom were his close friends.

He also met with representatives of many international political, economic, financial and cultural organizations while he was in office and afterwards.

That helped him constantly update his diplomatic knowledge and experiences, which he shared with other officials.

National benefits reigned supreme in his policies of diplomacy, which considered serving and promoting economic growth as the main task along with fostering reliable friendship and partnership with all other countries for peace, cooperation and development.

Vo Van Kiet acquired his diplomatic knowledge and experiences as well as his profound knowledge of arts as he grew from a teenage farmer who joined his brothers and sisters in the Nam Ky Khoi Nghia movement against the French colonialists in 1940 to a loyal Party member.

For almost half a century in the resistance wars against the French and American invasion, Vo Van Kiet was embraced and sheltered by the people.

He understood clearly the people’s strength and brainpower.

His constant learning efforts combined with the natural endowment of a genius had turned a pure farmer into an outstanding scholar.

Vo Van Kiet’s brain was that of a human being, a leader and a scholar.

Its flow of thoughts will always live in the nation’s flow of thoughts and in the people’s will and aspirations, helping the country overcome all challenges.

By Tuong Lai