Ton That Tung interview

Q: Since you had been well-paid and respected under the French, how come you went over to the Viet Minh?

A: This is something peculiar to the Vietnamese. We, intellectuals at that time, felt that we had been deprived of something. We were people without a country, and we felt very frustrated as a result. Even when we were still in grade schools we had been following the movements and the newspapers, which opposed the French. Of the various newspapers which we read very carefully, there was one published by a man named Nguyen Ai Quoc which we came to respect quite a lot. When the Viet Minh came into being, people came and asked me to go and treat an old man, an old comrade. I did not know who this man was, but when I met this man I was immediately struck by his very bright eyes. There was something in him, which attracted me right away. It was only later that I knew that this man was Chairman Ho Chi Minh. Ho Chi Minh and I talked often with each other, and through our conversation I realized that he was a. true patriot who wanted to save the nation. So it was easy for me to leave the French. And with me, all those who were close to me. I had just been married then, and my son was only 3 months old. But we went into the jungle, leaving our luxurious house and everything else behind. I did not forget to take with me all the surgical tools, which I later on brought back out of the jungle to equip this hospital here. My wife was sixteen at that time, and my son was only 3 months old.