| Name | Võ Văn Kiệt |
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| Order | 3rd & 5th Prime Minister of Vietnam (acting) |
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| Term start | March 10, 1988- June 22, 1988 |
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| Term end | August 8, 1991 - September 24, 1992 |
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| Predecessor | Phạm Hùng |
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| Successor | Đỗ Mười |
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| Order2 | 6th Prime Minister of Vietnam |
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| Term start2 | September 24, 1992 |
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| Term end2 | September 25, 1997 |
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| Predecessor2 | Đỗ Mười |
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| Successor2 | Phan Văn Khải |
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| Birth date | November 23, 1922 |
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| Birth place | Trung Hiep, Cochinchina, French Indochina |
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| Death date | June 11, 2008 |
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| Death place | Mount Elizabeth Hospital, Singapore |
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| Spouse | Phan Lương Cầm |
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| Party | Communist Party of Vietnam }} |
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Võ Văn Kiệt (23 November 1922 - 11 June 2008) was a Vietnamese politician and statesman. He was a veteran fighter in the long war against French and then American military forces in South Vietnam, and lost his first wife and two children to US bombing. He was Prime Minister of Vietnam from 8 August 1991 to 25 September 1997, who led the communist nation's return to the world arena after decades of war and isolation. He was one of the Vietnamese political leaders that led the innovation (Đổi mới) policy in Vietnam. His birth name was Phan Văn Hòa and he changed it to Võ Văn Kiệt when he joined the Indochinese Communist Party. He also had a pseudonym, Sáu Dân.
Background
Kiệt was born in 1922 into a peasant family in Trung Hiệp village, Vũng Liêm district,
Vĩnh Long province in the
Mekong Delta in southern Vietnam, then a part of
Cochinchina in what was called
French Indochina. He was admitted to the
Indochinese Communist Party in 1939. He joined the Anti-imperialist Youth Movement and took part in the Nam Kỳ (
Cochinchina) insurrection in Vũng Liêm district.
As a member of the communist-led Viet Minh independence movement, Kiệt fought the French in the First Indochina War (1946–1954) in Southern Vietnam and went North following the division of the country according to the Geneva Accords of 1954. In 1960, he was elected alternate member of the Communist Party Central Committee and became a full member in 1972. In 1976, following the reunification of the country, he was appointed Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee and he returned to Southern Vietnam to assume the position of Chairman of the People’s Committee of Hồ Chí Minh City (formerly known as Saigon). Soon after, he was elected alternate member of the Politburo of the CPV and made Secretary of the Party Committee of Hồ Chí Minh City.
Kiệt's first wife and his two children were killed by a bombing by US forces during the Vietnam War.
In 1982, he was promoted to Vice-premiership and became Chairman of the State Planning Commission. In 1987, he was appointed First Deputy Prime Minister of Vietnam and became acting Prime Minister from March to June 1988 after the sudden death of Phạm Hùng. In 1991, he is Prime Minister replaced Đỗ Mười who became General Secretary.
He is Advisor of Party's Central Committee from December 1997 to 2001.
In December 1997, Kiệt had received the Sao Vàng (Gold Star) Order, the State’s highest distinction, for his immense contributions to the Vietnamese revolution.
Final days
After retiring from politics, Kiệt lived in
Ho Chi Minh City. Since then, he had spoken out on many issues, and was seen as a defender of people's rights.
Võ Văn Kiệt was the highest-ranking former government official to have openly spoken out about reconciliation with Vietnamese exiles and democracy activists. Recently, he had spoken out against the proposed expansion of Hanoi and the demolition of the historic National Assembly building in Ba Đình Square to make place for a new one.
Kiệt was admitted to Singapore's Mount Elizabeth Hospital on June 3, 2008 with unspecified ailments and died at the age of 85 on early Wednesday, June 11, 2008.
State media did not announce his death until the night of June 12, after most foreign news agencies had already reported it and many foreign dignitaries had already offered condolences, including United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. The government of Vietnam announced a state funeral on June 14 and 15 to be held in the Reunification Palace (Ho Chi Minh City), Hanoi, and his birth province Vĩnh Long.
Excellent leader
The eulogy for Mr Kiệt was given by communist party leader
Nông Đức Mạnh at the
Reunification Palace in Hồ Chí Minh City, where his body had been lying in state.
He described Mr Kiệt as "an excellent leader of our party, state and people, a faithful revolutionary fighter who has devoted his whole life for national independence, socialism and people's happiness". Mr Kiệt's flag-draped coffin, carried in a glass case and accompanied by a military procession, was then taken through the streets, where thousands of mourners waited to pay tribute. Vietnam held two days of national mourning. Among the grey ranks of Vietnam's communist leadership, Mr Kiệt was one of few figures to have stood out.
Credited as the author of the reforms known as Đổi Mới, which have transformed Vietnam's economy, he was a rarity among senior officials in speaking out publicly against the failings of the communist system. One of his comrades in arms, Trần Quốc Hương, former head of intelligence for the Việt Cộng network in South Vietnam, wrote in the condolence book: "I was deeply moved by your death. You were my comrade, my friend, and my brother."
After the communist victory in 1975 he became party secretary of Saigon, and quietly defied hard-line official policy by trying to work with officials and businesses associated with the defeated government. As prime minister, Mr Kiệt presided over a period of dramatic economic growth and foreign investment.
In an interview with the BBC in 2007 he questioned whether Communist Party members were true patriots, saying: "The motherland of Vietnam doesn't belong to one person, one party or one group only."
In his final weeks, Kiệt also spoke out against the expansion of the capital Hanoi and expressed concern whether Vietnam could protect itself against rising sea levels caused by global warming.
Great contributions
Mr Kiệt led Vietnam's economic reform of the 1990s and its reopening to the outside world after decades of
isolation. His death raises questions about which way the communist party in Vietnam would move on. There had signs in late 2010s that Mr Kiệt's reformist allies had been losing their influence.
Kiệt had strategic thinking, strong determination for the renovation cause, and enterprising spirit, the top party leader stated, noting that the former prime minister, engaged in revolutionary activities at the age of 16 and then held many important positions.
Out of office, since 1997, Kiệt remained active in politics, publishing commentaries pushing for more liberalisation even as Vietnam joined the World Trade Organisation in 2007 and averaged annual GDP growth of 7.5 percent since 2000.
Funeral
Memorial and burial services at state level for Võ Văn Kiệt]] were organized in Vietnam's southern
Hồ Chí Minh City on Sunday morning June 15, 2008 with the participation of many residents and officials, including the country's top party and state leaders. Thousands of
mourners lined the streets of Hồ Chí Minh City for the funeral of Võ Văn Kiệt.
"The death of former prime minister Võ Văn Kiệt is a great loss to the party, state, people and his family... He had a spirit of daring to think and daring to do. The comrade (Kiet) and party and state leaders led all people to conduct the renovation cause, bringing our country out of the socioeconomic crisis," Nông Đức Mạnh, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee and head of the funeral board, said at the memorial service televised live by the Central Vietnam Television.
Top Communist Party officials, some wearing black suits and black ties, solemnly stood to attention in the front row of mourners before Kiệt's coffin during the service. Relatives stood in black mourning clothes and white headbands.
The coffin was draped in Vietnam's red flag with a gold star and enclosed in a glass case for transportation on a gun carriage through city streets to the national cemetery for burial.
Tens of thousands of mourners lined the streets to honor Kiệt as his coffin was carried in a procession of military vehicles through Hồ Chí Minh City to be cremated.
The country's political elite paid their respects in Reunification Palace, where Communist Party chief Nông Đức Mạnh headed long lines of mourners who filed past Kiệt's coffin from early Saturday.
As his body lay in state, the palace hall was filled with incense smoke and funereal music played by an army band. Saturday and Sunday were declared days of mourning with flags flying at half-mast at official buildings.
In a statement, current Prime Minister Nguyễn Tấn Dũng paid tribute to Kiệt as "a wholehearted, loyal, irrepressible and heroic Communist. All his life, all his heart and all his force was for the country and the people."
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Phạm Gia Khiêm told AFP that Kiệt "was very dynamic in setting policy in the renovation period, and I think his contribution will stay with the Vietnamese people forever."
World hails Võ Văn Kiệt
Leading international politicians have extended their condolences to the Vietnamese government and people over the death of Võ Văn Kiệt, praising his great contributions to Vietnam's economic development and renovation process.
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon voiced his sadness in a statement, noting the former prime minister's achievements in economic reform and diplomacy.
"As a major force behind the economic reforms in Vietnam that started in late 1980s, Võ Văn Kiệt paved the way for the country's transition from poverty to a decade of impressive economic growth," the Vietnam news agency (VNA) quoted Ban as saying in the statement on Saturday.
"During his time as the prime minister from 1991 to 1997, he also played a pivotal role in improving Vietnam's diplomatic relations with other countries," he said.
US Consul General Kenneth Fairfax said Kiệt was "the person who opened the door to renewed United States–Vietnam relations, and I think the people of Vietnam continue to benefit today from the openings that he introduced."
Fairfax called Kiệt "a real source of pride for the people who are looking to push forward Vietnam and to bring it to the next level of development.
"He actively favoured development and openness on all levels. He spoke about the economy, about the society, about the protection of the poor."
The e-newspaper of "Channel News Asia" reported on June 11 a letter from Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong that former PM Kiệt was an "old friend of Singapore", who did much to promote close bilateral ties.
Singapore's Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong also highlighted former PM Kiệt's key role in bringing Vietnam into the ASEAN grouping, while Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew said he was a visionary leader.
Polish Consul General Przemyslaw Jenke said Kiệt "was one of these fortunate people who lived long enough to see his dream come true."
Younger Vietnamese also expressed their sadness in thousands of letters to newspapers and in blogs.
Nguyễn Thịnh wrote on VietnamNet online: "Why did you pass away at this time, when the people and the country need your frank opinions for the government and the party to overcome this difficult period?"
Other media also reported on the death of Kiệt, with the Khmer language daily, Cambodia's Light, on June 12 posting an article with his portrait and biography, saying he is one of Vietnam's outstanding leaders who made many contributions to boosting the renovation process in Vietnam.
Former PM Kiệt is also an initiator for Vietnam's efforts to entry into the World Trade Organisation and a maker of sound economic policies which are basic for Vietnam's economic development, said the Cambodian newspaper.
Two UK newspapers of "Telegraph" and "The Times" also ran articles summarising his contributions to the two resistance wars against French colonists and the American imperialists and to Vietnam's renovation and economic development after 1975.
Famous quotes
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References
External links
A collection of articles about Vo Van Kiet (in Vietnamese)
Latest news about Vo Van Kiet, aggregate from most popular online news source in Vietnam (in Vietnamese)
International Herald Tribune: Vo Van Kiet, who led Vietnam to freer markets, dead at 85
Category:1922 births
Category:2008 deaths
Category:People from Vinh Long Province
Category:2008 in Vietnam
Category:Prime Ministers of Vietnam
Category:Vietnamese Buddhists
Category:Deaths from pneumonia
Category:Infectious disease deaths in Singapore
Category:Communist Party of Vietnam politicians
Category:Vietnam Gold Star recipients
