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Memorandum of Conversation

DATE: July 21, 1966

SUBJECT: Conversations in Bien Hoa Province

PARTICIPANTS: Professor Henry A. Kissinger, Harvard University
Richard W. Teare, Second Secretary, US Embassy, Saigon

In sequence:

1) Major Huynh van Tho, Duc Tu District Chief

2) Lieutenant Colonel Tran van Hai, Bien Hoa Province Chief

3) Messrs. Ho van Tam, chairman; Vo van Truyen, vice-chairman; Do huu Quon, secretary-general; and one other member of the Bien Hoa Provincial Council.

1. Major Tho, Duc Tu District Chief: Major Tho (who had been in his job for only a month, but who knew the area from his prior service on the III Corps staff) said that security was quite good in his district, largely because of the presence of large numbers of US and Australian troops over most of the past year. He said that the major problems in the district were commodity shortages for the Revolutionary Development program and the high cost of living, which was creating hardships for much of the population.

2. Lt. Col. Hai, Bien Hoa Province Chief: Col. Hai also acknowledged that the relatively good security in Bien Hoa was attributable in large part to the presence of Free World troops. In the course of a discussion of election preparations, Col. Hai claimed that he would be able to establish polling places in all but three or four villages in the province and that he would produce a 95% turn-out of registered voters by announcing he would deny commodities, social welfare assistance, etc. to persons who could not prove they had voted. The Colonel also mentioned the high cost of living and the rapid growth of Bien Hoa town; he said the housing situation was worse than in Saigon, because while houses were still available in Saigon to those who could afford the high rents, Bien Hoa had no houses available at any price.

3. Mr. Tam, chairman of the Provincial Council, and his colleagues: The councillors read some sample agenda items from a recent meeting; they had, for example, proposed that the provincial authorities improve sanitation by collecting garbage faster and by preventing flooding of principal streets during heavy rains. The councillors said they initiated almost all of the matters they debated, but they also discussed occasional problems referred to them by the Province Chief. When asked what sort of action the Province Chief took on the Council's recommendations to him, the councillors said many proposals were implemented immediately but those that cost money were invariably subjected to "further study". The councillors agreed that the

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two most important issues facing the people were the cost of living, which they hoped the US could do something about, and the need for fair elections to choose the Constituent Assembly. They acknowledged that their own election in 1965 had been eminently fair, but they feared that the present government would attempt to manipulate the coming election because there was more at stake.

POL:RWT:kw

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