The Vietnamese suffered Great Depression in the 1930s. This led to fall in the prices of rubber and rice, rise in rural debts, unemployment and rural uprisings. Since the provinces of Nghe An and Ha Tinh got the roughest end of this deal and had an old radical tradition, whenever the colonial system came under pressure, these regions were the first to rise up in rebellion. Hence, they were referred to 'electrical fuses' of Vietnam.