THE “THREE-READY (BA SẴN SÀNG)” MOVEMENT - THE EPIC OF THE CAPITAL’S YOUTH

Over more than eight decades of operation and development under the leadership of the Party, the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union has accomplished many great feats to build its glorious tradition through creative activities that have brought new strength and pride to young people. "Three-Ready" (Ba sẵn sàng) was one of hundreds of movements demonstrating the creativity and rise of Vietnamese youth in the resistance war to fight the US, save the country, liberate the South, and unify the Fatherland.

Millions of the Capital’s young people enthusiastically volunteered to join the “Three-Ready (Ba sẵn sàng)” movement.

More than 50 years ago, the Hanoi Youth Union launched the "Three-Ready (Ba sẵn sàng)" movement to light the mighty fire and arouse the revolutionary spirit for union members and youth of the Capital. The movement then became the revolutionary climax throughout the country. In August 1964, after the US’s aggression in the Gulf of Tonkin in preparation for launching an air war against the North, the youth of the whole country boiled over with the will to fight against foreign invaders and rushed to kill the enemy. Resisting the US to save the country became the fervent and burning aspiration of the youth of the whole country, including those in Hanoi. The Standing Committee of the Hanoi Youth Union recognized that it was necessary to have a movement that met the aspirations of youth and the mettle of young people.

Therefore, on the night of August 7th, after the US’s bombardment of the North, the Standing Committee of the Hanoi Youth Union met unannounced, agreed to launch the "Three-Ready" movement among Hanoi youths with three contents: readiness to fight, readiness to join the armed forces, and readiness to go anywhere and do whatever the country needs, and decided to organize a march of force. On the night of August 9, Hanoi youths rushed to the streets to show their strength and protest the US imperialists' expansion of the war of aggression against the North.

Initially, the "Three-Ready" movement attracted the Capital's youth. The most visible manifestation was the joining of volunteer military and youth forces. Tens of thousands of young people in the Capital applied to join the volunteer youth team, including many who wrote their letters in blood to show their determination to enlist in the army. Those volunteer letters are now kept at the Hanoi Museum.

Not only that, the "Three-Ready" movement of the Capital's youths was responded to and spread into a movement of the Northern youth to attract a large number of union members and young people. For more than a month, the North had more than 1 million young people expressing their determination to implement "Three-Ready". Based on the reality of the movement, in March, 1965, the Central Committee of the Youth Union officially called on the youths of the whole country to respond to the "Three-Ready" movement with the addition and enhancement of some contents. The "Three-Ready" (Ba sẵn sàng)" also gave rise to many other revolutionary action movements, including the "Five Volunteering" of the Southern youth or the "Three Capable" of the Women's Union... Appreciating the "Three-Ready (Ba sẵn sàng)" movement, in his letter to young people on the occasion of National Day (2/9/1965), Uncle Ho wrote that "In the current anti-American cause of saving the country, according to the call of the Fatherland, the youth of the whole country have raised the flag of revolutionary heroism to make many excellent achievements... Millions of young people in the North have joined the “Three-Ready” movement, and tens of thousands of young men and women have volunteered for the anti-American youth movement to save the country."

A “Three-Ready” volunteer petition of a Capital's youth

The "Three-Ready" movement flourished and went into depth to reach all types of young people. It introduced heroic collectives that went down in history, such as the 10 volunteer young girls who died heroically at Dong Loc junction or the 12 steel platoon girls who died while on duty in the enemy’s fierce attack on Truong Bon (Nghe An). The "Three-Ready" movement also produced heroes such as Trinh To Tam, Le Ma Luong, Bui Ngoc Duong, Dang Xuan Thieu, Dang Thuy Tram, and many other typical examples.

Report of the Executive Committee of Hanoi Youth Labor Union at the Congress of Outstanding People in the “Three-Ready” (Ba sẵn sàng)” movement

Following the spirit of courage and tenacity demonstrated in fighting to protect the fatherland in the period of peace, the Capital's young generation has pioneered and enthusiastically participated in volunteer movements to devote their youth to the cause of industrialization and modernization of the country. To continue the "Three-Ready” movement, the Central Youth Union officially launched the "Youth Volunteer" movement under the motto "Hanoi youth volunteers to build the Capital of the country". The movement is associated with the volunteer blue shirts and the radiant faces of Vietnamese youths, who are ubiquitous in all parts of the country.

Volunteer blue shirt - a symbol of Vietnamese youth (photo collected)

Youth movements have portrayed the image of the new generation of young people who know how to promote the heroic traditions of the nation, the Party, and the previous generations. It can be said that the “Three-Ready” (Ba sẵn sàng)” movement has gone down in history as an epic of youth and a foundation for the movements of youth nationwide in general and the youth of the Capital in particular to continue to shoulder their historical mission in the new era.

Nguyễn Thị Huệ - Nguyễn Thị Thịnh