Vietnamese Nationalism and Conflicts

Origins of Vietnamese Nationalism and Conflicts

• French Indochina was established in 1887, leading to harsh conditions that fueled hatred towards the French.
• Harsh conditions included La Corvée, peasant poverty, and limited French education (only 20% of elite boys).
• Vietnamese nationalism aimed to reclaim sovereignty and restore royalist rule in colonial Indochina.
• Phan Boi Chau founded the Duy Tan Hoi in 1904, advocating for the defeat of French invaders and the establishment of an independent Vietnamese state.
• The Cần Vương movement was a large-scale Vietnamese uprising against the French from 1885-1896, aiming to install Hàm Nghi as emperor.
• Ho Chi Minh petitioned for "Eight Demands of the Vietnamese People" at the Versailles Peace Conference in 1919.
• Russia's communist ideologies under Stalin influenced Ho Chi Minh, leading to the formation of the ICP in 1930.
• The Viet Minh was established in 1941.

Rise of Conflict

• The Japanese occupation from 1940-1945 caused economic collapse and the Great Famine of 1945, resulting in approximately 1-2 million deaths.
• The Office of Strategic Services (OSS), modern day CIA, collaborated with the Viet Minh to combat the Japanese, providing them with military equipment and training.
• Vietnam declared independence on September 2nd, 1945.
• The First Indochina War took place from 1946-1954.
• Diem enacted Law 10/59, which allowed military tribunals to impose death sentences on members of communist organizations.
• Strategic Hamlets involved relocating peasants to large rural areas with compensation and by September 1962, the Diem government claimed over 4 million people were relocated with Stanley Karnow commenting it "turned peasants into Vietcong sympathizers; peasants were fighting against an enemy that did not threaten them but instead had aligning views with them".
• The Diem government persecuted Buddhists, issuing a decree in May 1963 that banned the public display of Buddhist flags.
• The Second Indochina War occurred from 1955-1975.
• The National Liberation Front (NLF) formed in South Vietnam in 1950, comprising communists and nationalists.

Support from China and the USSR

• China and the USSR supported the communist movement in Vietnam.
• China supported spreading communism and maintaining ties with Viet Minh.
• Between 1965 and 1971, China deployed 320,000 troops with peak deployment in 1967 (170,000).
• In 1967, China offered peak economic aid of $225 million.
• Between 1954 and 1971, they contributed $1.8 billion.

Effects of Vietnamese Independence (1975-1980s)

• There was persecution of the Hoa people.
• Relations with indigenous groups grew tense due to establishing new economic zones to implement urban areas, displacing them.
• Religious freedoms were impacted, while Marxist ideology, which opposes religion, was followed, religion was not banned.
• Ho Chi Minh, however, tolerated religion more than most communist leaders.
• After the Fall of Saigon, many Christian and Catholic Vietnamese families fled due to fear of persecution by the communist government.
• Many Christians had aided the Americans and were affiliated with previous French values.
• Catholic priests were jailed, congregational gatherings were banned, and churches were closed.
• While the practice of Buddhism was tolerated, it was intended to stay at a minimum.
• Religious groups had to register with a government organization such as Vietnamese buddhists sanghan (VBS) in 1981.
• 800,000 people fled Vietnam after the war, resettling in countries like the USA, Australia, France, and Canada.
• Approximately 10% of the immigrants died at sea due to a lack of rations and pirates.
• Immigrating to countries in Southeast Asia was difficult.