1945 commencement speech

Towards the 65th anniversary of the tradition of the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, the University's website respectfully introduces the speech of Professor Dr. Nguyen Van Huyen, Director of the State University at the opening ceremony of Vietnam National University on November 15, 1945. This document was provided by Associate Professor Le Mau Han, based on sources from the Archives of the French School of the Far East, Nguyen Van Huyen's file folder P14, a pencil copy collected by Nguyen Phuong Ngoc (a graduate student in France) and sent to Professor Nguyen Van Huyen's family. Below is the full text of the speech:

SPEECH BY PROFESSOR DR. NGUYEN VAN HUYEN - DIRECTOR OF THE UNIVERSITY OF STATE AFFAIRS - AT THE OPENING CEREMONY OF THE VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY ON NOVEMBER 15, 1945

“Mr. President, Ladies and Gentlemen, Ladies and Gentlemen, I am very pleased and moved to see this solemn ceremony opening a new era for the University of Vietnam. Before presenting to you the methods of the University, I would like to, on behalf of the entire University Board, thank the President for taking the time to preside over our ceremony. I also do not forget to thank the representatives of the Allied Powers in Hanoi and our compatriots from all walks of life who came to witness this university opening ceremony. Your presence here adds to the solemnity of a ceremony that is usually just an intimate meeting of Professors and students. But today's ceremony, we, Professors and students, want to be an opportunity to show the world that in this serious moment for the future of our Fatherland, the Vietnamese people, in addition to the bloody struggle on the battlefield, have also strived to participate in the cultural progress of humanity. We want this new university to be a fighting force of the Vietnamese people. We want it to be a stronghold for a long-term resistance to completely restore the territory and liberate the spirit of our nation, a civilized nation with over a thousand years of independent history and self-created a unique civilization on the Pacific coast. Ladies and gentlemen, because I feel the importance of the university, I would like to take advantage of today's meeting to present to you a few words about our work. This national university opened in very difficult circumstances. The world had just buried the fire of war for more than a month when the war and massacre broke out again on the largest and most fertile strip of land in the South. Based on unjust and false theories, the French colonialists went against the common struggle for the freedom of humanity. That invasion was still continuing fiercely, and we were ordered to immediately lay the foundation of the national university. Although it was difficult, thanks to the help of everyone, we did not miss our deadline. As for the students, everyone quietly understood their responsibilities and continued to enroll in the departments, and to take the exams to move up to the next level or to graduate, enthusiastically and effectively. That is not to mention the students and young intellectuals who are currently in the army, or in other combat agencies, not to mention the brothers in the South who are still fighting on the battlefield, or still participating in administrative work, the brothers in the Central region who are still hindered by roads, the brothers in neighboring Cambodia and Laos who are being divided by the French colonialists and have not yet come to help the brothers present here. In any case, with the number of students who have enrolled in the departments, we also see that the University is opening on a positive basis. But we hope that before peace and sacred justice return to this country, the number of students will increase to be worthy of the number of studious citizens and of Vietnam's position in East Asian civilization. Regarding the Professors, we have the responsibility to establish a new category because the foundation left by the French colonialists is too weak. In choosing Professors who have the supreme responsibility of guiding the progressive intellectual youth of our country during this important historical period, we have based it not only on qualifications, but also on experience. We have focused on professionals who have a direct connection with the life of the nation, in all fields of activity in the country such as doctors, scholars, engineers. Everyone has helped us in this difficult selection task. Everyone has sacrificed their lives so that the university can quickly produce results. In addition to the professionals, we have received help from figures in the diplomatic, political, and cultural circles. Yes, in this new group of Professors, we have enough talented people to participate in the construction work: new scholars, old scholars, veterans, and young people. Everyone was enthusiastic, not afraid of many tasks, but used their talents and experiences to build a new culture for the country, trying to find suitable methods for training talented people, not being too attached to old customs, not blindly taking a risk on a newly paved path. In order to give the university construction a solid foundation, we were allowed by the Government to establish a Board of Directors consisting of experienced Professors and those interested in universities. The Board's task was to find a suitable method to expand the university and to manage an autonomous budget similar to the autonomous funds at universities in developed European and American countries. This fund is subsidized annually by the Government, and we hope that many benefactors in the country will help either with cash or with houses and land so that the university can develop quickly. That fund must have many people to help because our laboratories and libraries still need to be expanded a lot, especially during the war years, many inventions were made that are very important for modern civilization. In short, the Vietnamese University, after so many years of restraint, urgently needs to take a big step forward. At present, the University in this academic year has five faculties: Medicine, Science, Literature, Social Politics, and Fine Arts. The Faculty of Medicine has Medicine, Pharmacy, and Dentistry; the Faculty of Science has the faculties of Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, and Natural Sciences; the Faculty of Fine Arts has Painting and Sculpture. This whole faculty is currently still following the old rules. But within this academic year, a council will be convened to find ways to reform it to be in line with the progress of humanity. Of the two new faculties, Social Politics and Literature, the Faculty of Social Politics will replace the old Faculty of Law because that framework is not suitable for the needs of all the branches of this reformed society. In the 1945-46 school year, the Department of Social and Political Sciences had two classes: a special class for students who had already studied two years of Law; a regular class was open to all young people with a high school diploma who wanted to transfer to any field of politics and administration. This class lasted two years: the first year taught the general concepts of civil law, constitution, public law and economics. Students who graduated from the first year would study a second year specializing in either economics and administration, or public law. Later, students who graduated in any major could temporarily apply it in all fields of national activity, administration, diplomacy, justice, commerce, law, etc. The Department of Arts was completely new. The purpose of this department is partly to train a number of professors for the secondary school system, and partly to create a solid foundation among the young people so that they can participate in research and inventions in all fields of Philosophy, Social Sciences, Literature, History, Geography, and be a part of the great work of building the culture of all modern civilized humanity. Therefore, within a period of two years, we will open ten departments: two departments of Philosophy, one department of Social Sciences, four departments of Literature, two departments of History, and one department of Geography. These departments will be divided into four specialized departments to facilitate the guidance of students in the special fields of activity of the spirit of philosophy, history, geography, Vietnamese literature, and Chinese literature. Furthermore, considering that in today's world of solidarity no country, large or small, can live in isolation, the University will pay special attention in the 1945-46 school year to languages ​​that are important to culture, such as Chinese, English-American, and Russian. In addition, thanks to the dedication of the Ministries of Economics and Communications, the Veterinary, Agricultural, and Public Works Colleges will also open today. Mr. President, Ladies and Gentlemen, That is a summary of the policies of the Vietnam National University in the first year of the democratic republic. With the cooperation of the Professors, with the enthusiasm of the students, with the patriotism and sacrifice of everyone, we believe that we will succeed. And also because we believe that the University is one of the foundations of national construction, we, gathered here today, with the solemn encouragement of our distinguished guests, feel a shared responsibility to train the spirit of a number of selected potential people from all walks of life, regardless of gender, nobility or nobility, rich or poor, to help build a new culture for Vietnam. We feel that we have a shared responsibility to train a large number of people with the virtues and abilities to lead the masses, gentlemen, if you will allow me to use an old word, in the old sense of an Eastern civilization, who both know how to cultivate knowledge so that they can judge all civilized forces, and know how to deal with reality so that they can immediately apply their knowledge in life to raise the national flag high with our compatriots of all walks of life in all storms, and in all international meetings on the culture of peace, justice, freedom, happiness, and brilliant love of humanity in the future. Therefore, we will hold the opening ceremony of this university in a simple and solemn manner so that all of you will clearly understand the mission and strive together.