HÀ NỘI – Journalists working for the Quân Đội Nhân Dân (People’s Army) and Nhân Dân (People) newspapers and Việt Nam Television have won first prizes at the Golden Hammer & Sickle Awards.

The awards, instituted for the first time to recognise outstanding work done in disseminating information and promoting understanding about the Party’s policies and aims, were given at a ceremony held in Hà Nội yesterday to celebrate the 87th anniversary of the Việt Nam Communist Party.

From a total of 1,173 entries for a journalism writing contest about Party-building, 47 were short-listed for prizes.  

The three first prizes were given to writers with the publications mentioned above for a series of stories about preventing and fighting falling ethical and moral standards in the Party ranks.

Seven second prizes, 12 third prizes and 25 “encouragement prizes” were also awarded.

Two stories by reporters from the Vietnam News Agency that profiled several local young Party leaders won third prizes and another about border guards won an encouragement prize.

Speaking at the event, Politburo member and permanent member of the Party Central Committee Secretariat, Đinh Thế Huynh, highlighted the leading role that the Party has played in the country’s đổi mới (Renewal) process.

He said the revolutionary cause espoused by the Party for the last 87 years offered valuable lessons. It showed that building a clean and powerful Party were key tasks of each and every member, he added.

In the 30 years that the country engaged in the đổi mới, process, journalists had made significant contributions to the work of Party-building, he said.

The work done in analyzing Party work, policies and theories had strengthened the Party’s leadership, he added.

Huynh congratulated all the journalists who had participated in the contest, saying their work showcased their devotion, knowledge and responsibility, enabling the Party-building process.

He also urged media agencies and political organizations to support journalists in their work of reporting about the Party, particularly relating to the fight against all kinds of enemies, within and outside the country.

Phạm Minh Chính, Head of the PCC Organising Commission, said the new contest would capture the political implications of the Party’s fight against bureaucracy, corruption and wastefulness.

It would breath new life into the work of disseminating the Party’s work and aims, and help find solutions that would boost public confidence in the Party across the country, including among people in remote areas and the business sector, he said. - VNS