Archival materials on Vietnam during the modern and contemporary periods - their value and accessibility.

Here are some more photos from the workshop.

Seminar video

The conference attracted more than 50 papers from scientists and managers from many countries around the world, including Vietnam, France, Germany, the United States, the Russian Federation, and Japan. In addition to the four major National Archives Centers of Vietnam, the state management agency (the State Archives and Records Department - Ministry of Interior) and the Party's archives agency (the Archives Department of the Central Party Office), the authors of the papers were researchers from various fields such as archival studies, history, sociology, Sino-Vietnamese studies, Ho Chi Minh studies, and public administration.

Professor Pham Quang Minh, Rector of the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, delivered the opening remarks at the conference.

The discussions at the conference focused on affirming that archival sources on Vietnam in the modern and contemporary periods are very diverse and are currently managed in many countries around the world such as France, the Russian Federation, Japan, Germany, Taiwan (China), and the United States, encompassing various types such as administrative documents, film and audio recordings, documents, maps, scientific and technical documents, and digital documents. These are countries with many connections to Vietnam both in the past and present.

This massive volume of archival documents is currently preserved and made available for access and use at national archives, archives of political organizations, universities, and private archives of individuals, families, and clans in Vietnam and many other places around the world.

The rich source of archival material reflects the immense and diverse potential value of these historical sources for research, especially the study of Vietnamese history in all fields: politics, culture, society, economics, international relations, etc.

Dr. Dao Duc Thuan, Head of the Department of Archival Studies and Office Management, Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, presented the introductory report for the conference.

If properly managed and utilized, information from these authentic, truthful, and objective historical sources will contribute to shedding more light on many historical events and phenomena in Vietnam during the modern and contemporary periods.

The presentations at the conference all supported the principle of cooperation and sharing of archival information and documents in the trend of globalization and internationalization. In that spirit, and in accordance with the current legal regulations of each country and territory in the field of archives and information, organizations and individual scientists have relatively equal opportunities to access sources of documents and materials to serve their research.

The speakers also agreed that the archival and document management agencies of the countries involved need to strengthen and further enhance existing cooperation to achieve the ultimate and most important goal of archival activities: maximizing the value of documents for various purposes in social life.

Based on the content of the presentations, the conference organizers continued to discuss in more detail the following issues: the current state of archival management of Vietnam in various countries' archives; the outstanding value in form and content of archival materials and documents about Vietnam in each field; the legal regulations of national archives related to the exploitation and promotion of the value of archival materials in general and archival materials about Vietnam in particular; the potential for cooperation in sharing archival information resources between countries and the potential for research and training in archival studies.

The speakers posed for a commemorative photo after the opening session of the conference.

The workshop lasted all day, with 7 sessions and was divided into 2 working subcommittees:

Subcommittee 1 focused on archival sources of Vietnamese political and historical documents in the modern and contemporary periods. Some reports presented in this subcommittee included: Some Western sources of Vietnamese history: Current status of exploitation and research prospects; Archival sources of Vietnamese history during the French colonial period: The trap of diversity; Catalogues related to Ho Chi Minh from the SLOTFOM (4001-4014 COL) and SPCE (6 HCI) combined archives; Archival relics and evidence: Historical sources serving the study of modern history in the mountainous regions of Northern Vietnam...

Subcommittee 2 focused on the topic of source materials on Vietnam's socio-economic period in the modern and contemporary eras. Some of the reports presented at the workshop included: Introduction to the archival collection of Japanese trading companies in Vietnam during the modern and contemporary periods - DAINAN KOOSI; Source materials on migration in Vietnam: The case of the Japanese (1880-1950); Documents on associations active during the French colonial period preserved in the national archives of France and Vietnam...

This is a valuable forum for administrators and scientists to discuss and evaluate the value of historical sources about Vietnam, creating opportunities for academics from interested countries to understand the accessibility of archival materials for the study of Vietnamese history from various perspectives.

The workshop also served as a practical activity to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the establishment of the Department of Archival Studies and Office Management, Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University, Hanoi (1996-2016) and to commemorate the 50th anniversary of archival university training in Vietnam (1967-2017).