The stories are told in a book entitled “Ho Chi Minh & Sukarno” by Bonnie Triyana, the Editor-in-Chief of Historia.id, the largest online historical magazine of Indonesia.
The book devotes a whole chapter to stories told by some Indonesians who had a chance to meet President Ho Chi Minh, including those of Amarzan who had a conversation with the late leader.
Amarzan, a 23-year-old reporter of Bintang Merah, a magazine by the Communist Party of Indonesia (PKI) then, was the youngest of the five-member press delegation of Indonesia to meet President Ho Chi Minh in 1964.
The meeting took place at a small house besides the Presidential Palace, and Uncle Ho had to jump over a rope to reach the house, which was a way for him to do physical exercise, Amarzan recalled in his writing.
It created a cozy atmosphere, which was much different from what he had imagined about a leader’s reception for guests. In Amarzan’s memory, Paman Ho was a man who loved the nature and always kept his promises, and a leader who was not difficult to meet.
He used a fluent English to talk to the Indonesian journalists, and inquired after “Bung Karno,” the way Indonesians call President Sukarno.
The friendly behaviors of the Vietnamese leader made the guests feel comfortable. The conversation also included poetry, with Amarzan reciting an Indonesian version of a poem by Paman Ho, and Uncle Ho’s opinions on what youngsters should and should not learn from him.
Amarzan Loebis, whose full name was Amarzan Ismail Hamid, died in September 2019 at the age of 77. He was a senior journalist of Indonesia and the author of many famous books.
Source: VNA