Declaration of Independence of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam

For the people of Vietnam, who were just beginning to recover from five years of ruthless
economic exploitation by the Japanese, the end of World War II promised to bring eighty years
of French control to a close. As the League for the Independence of Vietnam (Vietnam Doc Lap
Dong Minh Hoi), better known as the Viet Minh, Vietnamese nationalists had fought against the
Japanese invaders as well as the defeated French colonial authorities. With the support of rich
and poor peasants, workers, businessmen, landlords, students, and intellectuals, the Viet Minh
(led by Ho Chi Minh) had expanded throughout northern Vietnam where it established new local
governments, redistributed some lands, and opened granaries to alleviate the famine. On
September 2, 1945, Ho Chi Minh proclaimed the independent Democratic Republic of Vietnam
in Hanoi’s Ba Dinh square and began the war against the French colonizers. The first lines of his
speech repeated verbatim the famous second paragraph of America’s 1776 Declaration of
Independence.
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Section 1 (quoting ideals and beliefs from western countries like the USA and France)
All men are created equal. They are endowed by their Creator with certain [human] rights,
among them are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness."
This [sentence] was made in the Declaration of Independence of the United States of America in
1776. In a broader sense, this means: All the people on the earth are equal from birth, all the
peoples have a right to live, to be happy and free.
The Declaration of the French Revolution made in 1791 on the Rights of Man and the Citizen
also states: “All men are born free and with equal rights, and must always remain free and have
equal rights.”
Those are undeniable truths.
Nevertheless, for more than eighty years, the French imperialists, abusing the standard of
Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity, have violated our Fatherland and oppressed our fellow-citizens.
Critical thinking:
1. Why do you think Ho Chi Minh includes quotes from western countries like the USA and
France?
2. What international goal did Ho Chi Mihn have in mind by using such statements
3. What was Ho Chi Minh telling his fellow Vietnamese people?

Topic Sentence Example Paraphrase: Analysis (show Conclusion:

(points or claims (quotes from the Redefine the the link between (Restate your
you are making) documents) example so the the example and point/claim)
reader knows the topic
what to focus on sentence)
 He was telling Ho Chi Minh When Ho Chi When Ho Chi Ho Chi Minh is
them to fight said that France Minh said about Minh quoted trying to get
against France. has “violated our France ‘violating that, he wanted Vietnamese
Fatherland and their fatherland the Vietnamese people to fight
oppressed our and oppressing people to see by telling them
fellow-citizens”. their what France has how France has
fellow-citizens’, done to them treated them and
he was telling and that they their country.
the Vietnamese should fight
people that they against them.
are being treated
unfairly by
France, they
have invaded
their country,
and took their
freedom away.

Section 2: Description of what life was like for the Vietnamese people under French rule
They have acted [opposite] to the ideals of humanity and justice.
In the field of politics, they have taken our people of every democratic [freedom].
They have enforced inhuman laws; they have set up three [different] political regimes in
the North, the Center and the South of Vietnam in order to wreck our national unity and
prevent our people from being united.
They have built more prisons than schools. They have mercilessly slain our patriots; they have
drowned our [rebellions] in rivers of blood.
They have [silenced] public opinion; they have [hide news] from our people.
To weaken our race they have forced us to use [drugs] and alcohol.
In the field of economics, they have [taken everything from us], and devastated our land.
They have robbed us of our rice fields, our mines, our forests, and our raw materials. They have
[total control] of the money and the export trade.
They have invented numerous [unreasonable] taxes and reduced our people, especially our
[working class], to a state of extreme poverty.
They have [slowed] the [growth] of our national [buisnesspeople]; they have mercilessly [taken
advantaged] of our workers.

Historian questions
1. Who is “they”?
 2. Based on what was said here, do you think life under French rule was nice for the
Vietnamese people?
3. Based on the descriptions, how did France maintain control of Vietnam? Look at the
bolded section: why do you think the French did that?

Topic Sentence Example Paraphrase Analysis Conclusion

I think the Ho Chi Minh Ho Chi Minh The French The French has
French did that said “they have talked about wanted Vietnam divided the
to prevent the taken our people them trying to to be divided so Vietnamese
Vietnamese of every divide their they can not people to turn
people from democratic country, take come together to them powerless,
being united and (freedom)” and away their fight. They hurt ununited, and
powerful with “they have freedom by the people with unable to fight.
the capability to mercilessly slain hurting and drugs and
fight against our patriots” mistreating their alcohol and they
them. people and take everything
taking control away from the
over their whole people to make
nation. them powerless
in their own
country.

4. Noting the bias: ​Do you think the French would describe life in Vietnam in the same way as
Ho Chi Minh did?

Topic Sentence Example Paraphrase Analysis Conclusion

I do not think When Ho Chi Since Ho Chi The French It will be a

the French Minh quoted Minh is a strong could just be different
would describe that “to weaken nationalist for selling drugs and description of
the Vietnamese our race they his country, he alcohol to the their lives
people’s lives in have forced us to could just be people and Ho depending on
the same way use drugs and exaggerating the Chi Minh could who’s talking
Ho Chi Minh. alcohol,'' he truth about their be saying that because of their
could be mistreatment. they forced the different points
exaggerating the people into of views.
point where the drugs and
French were just alcohol.
selling drugs and
alcohol, not
forcing.