From: khanh kim nguyen <knguyen@emr.ca>
Subject: Re: NGO DINH DIEM
X-Xxmessage-Id: <A6F0C3C000022259@knguyen.emr.ca>
X-Xxdate: Thu, 1 Oct 92 15:03:28 GMT
Organization: emr
X-Useragent: Nuntius v1.1.1d11
Date: Thu, 1 Oct 1992 19:39:20 GMT

Subject: NGO DINH DIEM
From: Khanh V. Nguyen, khanh@edison.seas.ucla.edu
Date: 28 Sep 92 18:34:13 GMT
In article <8196@lee.SEAS.UCLA.EDU> Khanh V. Nguyen,
khanh@edison.seas.ucla.edu writes:
>The biggest mistake America has made in the Vietnam war is the plot to
>overthrown South Vietnam's first President NGO DINH DIEM.
>(paraphase from R. Nixxon's "No More Vietnam")
>
>For most Americans, President Ngo Dinh Diem is seen as an oppressive
dictator.
>But for millions of Vietnamese, he is a national hero, a brave leader who
>devoted his life for the welfare of his country.
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I agree totally. The way of involvement by creating coup d'etats causes 
backfires, lost of faith among friends US would like to help.
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>President Diem always opposed the use of foreign military forces in
Vietnam
>(except for advising purposes). That is why he was eliminated by the coup
>directed by CIA to open the way for US's direct involment in Vietnam.
Under
>his leadership, the South Vietnam Army has only about 100,000 personels,
but
>South Vietnam was in firm control. Ten years after Diem's death, the Army
>grew ten folds in man power, with extensive US's military aids, and with
the
>help of more than one millions US soldiers. Yet, South Vietnam became
more
>and more insecure. Most Americans never know this fact.
>
>President Diem was a Catholic, but he never practiced systematic
discrimination
>against other religions as most Americans believe. Most of his Generals
were 
>Buddish, same is true for his cabinet's ministers. Under his government,
all
>people were free to practice their religion. Although there were
conflicts 
>between Diem's goverment and the Buddish movement, these conflicts
actually 
>rooted in politics. They were part of North Vietnam's plan to destable
the
>South.
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His failure and death are partly caused by the members of his family too. 
At that time, we become independent, democratic nation; but it is still a
*feudal* society. He has got a big mistake to let his family take over
or influence top spots. This has created big resentment.
Compared with thugs who killed him, he is still the right stuff.
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>
>President Diem did have many mistakes. He lacked flexibility in handling
>sensitive problems. But as the first elected president of Vietnam, he has
>transformed South Vietnam from a French colony to an independent nation.
>Unfortunately, American and Communist intervention stopped him from
>finishing his grand plan.
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Agreed. But one thing we have to look at is about generals and officers
who
killes Mr. Ngo-dinh-Diem. Almost those faces live in France now. Read
memoirs 
about their life, you will feel sad. Those are thugs who are not trained
to
govern, but to get fat and to run abroad fast. You will see many of them 
have two nationalities (Vietnamese and French).  
In brief, if we are good, more educated, compassionate nobody can 
overthhrow our elected government.
This issue is one of the thorns on US side and on our side too.
Newsgroups: alt.war.vietnam