Toward the end of World War II, the Japanese made an "about face" and forcefully removed the French from the administration of Vietnam. Many French people lost their lives to the Japanese in Vietnam at this time. This left the country in a state of turmoil and without most public services, as these had been run by the French for over sixty years.
Some of the hard-feeling by the French for the United States today may be traced to the fact that the United States did not intercede immediately in the French people's behalf when the Japanese finally took action against them. On the other hand, many Americans did not understand the French cooperation and hospitable attitude toward the Japanese up to this point in Vietnam.
On April 16, 1945, a government was formed by Tran Trong Kim in an effort to restore law and order and to reorganize the country under Vietnamese administration. Even though the government was formed while still under Japanese occupation and during a world war, the new government formally declared that it was independent and "newborn" and that it wanted to be left alone for its reorganization.
According to Vietnamese historians, the Japanese refused to turn over the arms, money, tools, buildings, etc., that they had seized from the French. Without these things, the new government was helpless. Tran Trong Kim resigned about a week before the end of World War II. Emperor Bao-Dai abdicated on August 25, 1945, and a vacuum was created in the government, paving the way for further conflicts. In addition, the desire for national independence was a natural subterfuge for the communists in their attempts to take over the rice bowl of Asia.
The Viet-Minh
"Viet-Minh" is an abbreviation for "Vietnam Doc Lap Dong Minh" or "League for the Independence of Vietnam." The organization was founded during World War II by Vietnamese refugees in China.
Evidently this was used as a front organization for the communists, for Nguyen Ai Quoc, one of its leaders, changed his name to Ho Chi Minh in order to conceal his communist past, as he knew that the Vietnamese had little interest in communism but wanted national independence.
Supposedly, the Viet-Minh were to act as underground agents against the Japanese during that time, and some Americans from our various secret agencies were even posted with them. In actuality, the Viet-Minh did not make outstanding progress in harming the Japanese.
Many Vietnamese nationalists were induced to join the Viet-Minh as they believed they were going to seek the independence of Vietnam.
Ho Chi Minh proclaimed his government in Hanoi on September 2, 1945, without having to fire a single shot. When the French re-entered Vietnam, they found themselves at war with a group that had been armed in part by the Allies. Many of the Vietnamese chose to join their own government, even if it was a communist one, in order to drive the foreign power, France, out of their country for good.
The French installed the Emperor Bao Dai on March 8, 1949, promising independence within the French union. The whole set-up was rife with confusion, and graft was rampant. Instead of drawing the people to the French-run government, the opposite happened and more people joined the side of Ho Chi Minh.
Errors, lost battles, and a strange new kind of war led to the French forces defeat at Dien Bien Phu on May 8, 1954. The Vietnamese people fought to victory in spite of the superior French forces and fire power. They won, but unfortunately many of them were deceived. Those Vietnamese chose what they thought to be the lesser of two evils only to be trapped within communist subversion.
The end of French rule in Vietnam occurred when the Geneva Accords were signed in 1954 bringing colonial wars in the area to an end, and signalling the beginning of an even more dangerous, outright communist war.
The Geneva Accords
Under the terms of the Geneva agreement, the northern part of Vietnam and about half of Central Vietnam came under communist control. The remainder of Central Vietnam and all the South became "free" and the Emperor Bao-Dai was its head of government at the time. Laos and Cambodia also became independent national states under the Geneva Accords.
One particular clause in the Accords provided that people in either zone could move to the other if they so desired. Approximately one million refugees flowed to the southern areas of Vietnam because they did not wish to live under communism. A good accounting of this mass movement is included in Dr. Thomas Dooley's book, Deliver Us From Evil. A few thousand southerners also moved north.
Viet-Cong
Many communists remained in the south to raise their heads later when the Viet-Minh showed up once again, this time known as the Viet-Cong. (Viet communists represented by the National Liberation Front.)
Emperor Bao-Dai was deposed in 1955 and President Ngo Dinh Diem was installed by popular vote in the south.
The communists have continued in their efforts to weaken and destroy the government in South Vietnam and have wholeheartedly carried out their plans to conquer the south. In 1961, U.S. military aid was greatly increased to meet the challenge of the serious threat to the survival of the South Vietnamese people.
Viet-Cong terror tactics are known throughout the world today and many free nations led by the United States have joined hands with the South Vietnamese people to defeat the communists in South Vietnam. It is a difficult battle, but one that has received the determination to win from the United States under the leadership of Presidents Eisenhower, Kennedy, and Johnson.
Later Governments in South Vietnam
President Diem's government started out well in South Vietnam and he became known in some circles as the "George Washington" of that country. He continued with a series of improvements for the citizens of Vietnam that would do credit to any leader. Unfortunately, he became more and more dictatorial, refused guidance from noted counselors and relied more and more on his brother Nhu, and his wife, Madame Nhu.
Gradually, the situation became worse. Two attempted coup d'etat's were foiled, but the third succeeded on November 1, 1963. Diem and his brother Nhu were captured, and both were killed by a dissident Major in the Army of Vietnam.
Diem was toppled by military means by a military junta led by an affable General Duong Van Minh. He, too, was replaced in a bloodless coup on January 30, 1964, by General Nguyen khanh. General Khanh was also replaced after a see-sawing effort to stay in power.
Since that time there have been a number of civilian and military caretaker governments, only one of which has remained in power for an appreciable length of time. It is headed by South Vietnamese Premier Gao Ky, a flamboyant young officer who worked his way from Colonel to Vice Air Marshal and Premier of the country in a period of less than three years.
INTERESTING PEOPLE IN VIETNAM'S PAST
A new Saigon resident can learn the names of Vietnam's heroes in a matter of weeks. Practically every street in the city is named for a famous person from Vietnam's colorful history. When the French were in control of Vietnam, the street names were French. After their departure and the formation of the new government, only two streets in Saigon kept their former names. They are:
Pasteur Street—Named after the famed French scientist and in thanks for the tremendous work accomplished by the Pasteur Institute in Vietnam.
Alexander-de-Rhodes—The French priest who gave the Vietnamese their language in romanized script. (See Chapter 3.)
Streets in Saigon named for Vietnamese heroes include:
Tran
