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VC Terror-Records PDF
VC Terror-Records PDF
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I
To provide the reader with a sense of the all-encolTlpass-
ing nature of cOlTllTlunist terror in Viet-NalTl, representative, but
by no lTleans cOlTlprehensive, exalTlples have been selected frolTl
books, governlTlent files, newspaper lTlorgues and International
Control COlTllTlission reports.
I
The Viet Minh war against the French was lTlarked by con_
siderable use of terror, not only against the French but against
VietnalTlese who did not support the Viet Minh.
"Tha t city (Saig on) was in the hand s of the Viet Minh
.
For a mont h on end life there was a night mare . Durin
g the day
every thing seem ed quiet .. Fear came back with the
twili ght.
The dark ness outsi de was full of prow ling Viet Minh
... ' It was
an endle s s vigil . In every hous e the waiti ng had the
same aspe ct.
The room s were lit for sake of face. The men playe
d card s with
their only weap ons, the kitch en knive s, withi n hand
's reach .
From time to time they brok e off to calm their wive
s overt aken
by hyste ria. The child ren, all put into the same bed
in a next-
door room , trem bled with fear and were sick on the
mosq uito
nettin g. The terro r moun ted. From mout h to mout
h ran the
name s of men who had been hack ed to piece s, of wom
en who had
been raped and cut open , of child ren who had been
maim ed. The
shrie ks of those who were being tortu red to death
could be heard .
The Viet Minh had set up Resi stanc e camp s in the
subu rbs and
there they took their hosta ges, buryi ng them alive
, with only
their head s show ing abov e the groun d. The horr or
reach ed its
culm inatin g point ... when some one hund red men were
dism embe r-
ed, slash ed to piece s in unim agina bly horri ble circu
msta nces. "
North Viet-Nam
De nn is T. Du nca nso n, Go
ve rnm en t an d Re vo lut ion
Na m. Lo nd on Ox for d Un ive rsi ty in Vi et-
Pr es s, 196 8; pp 17 3-4 .
Dece mbe r 12, 1965 - Two terro rist plato ons kill 23
Viet nam ese cana l cons truct ion work ers asle ep in a
Budd hist
Pago da in Tan Huon g, Dinh Tuon g prov ince; woun d
seve n
othe rs.
Janu ary 17, 1966 - Com mun ists in Kien Tuon g deto
nate
a mine unde r a high way bus, killin g 26 civil ians, seve
n of
them child ren. Eigh t pers ons are injur ed and three
are
liste d as miss ing.
Janu ary 18, 1966 Com mun ists mine a bus in Kien
Tuon g prov ince , killi ng 26 civil ians .
Janu ary 29, 1966 - Terr oris ts kill a Cath olic prie
st,
Fath er Phan Khac Dau, 74, at Than h Tri, Kien Tuon
g pro-
vinc e. Five othe r civil ians, inclu ding a chur ch offic
er,
are also kille d. The mara uder s dese crate the chur
ch, des-
troyi ng its statu ary and relig ious artif acts .
October 24, 1966 - The Hue -Quang Tri bus runs over
a mine in Phong Dien district, Thua Thien province; 15
passengers are injured.
off
Nove tnber 26, 1966 - A Clay tnore -type tnine is set
l, An
in the playg round of the Trinh Hoai Duc boys I schoo
using adja-
Than h, Binh Duon g provi nce. Kore an troop s are
and
cent area as a train ing site. Thre e Kore ans are killed
a Vietn atnes e stude nt is woun ded.
tnar-
Nove tnber 30, 1966 - Cotn tnuni st shell Tan Uyen
woun ding
ket, Bien Hoa provi nce, killin g three civil ians and
seven .
103
or is ts
67 - In A n X uy en pr ov in ce , te rr
Ja nu ar y 8, 19 O ne of
in to th e ho us e of a ha m le t ch ie f.
th ro w a gr en ad e ed .
d th re e ot he r ci vi lia ns ar e w ou nd
lle d an
th e ch ild re n is ki
d an d th re e
, 19 67 - T hr ee ci vi lia ns ar e ki lle
Ja nu ar y 12
rs ar e w ou nd ed in an am bu sh of a
so ld ie
So ut h V ie tn am es e 14 , tw o ki lo m et er s so ut h
of Ta n
H ig hw ay
tr uc k on N at io na l
C an h vi lla ge .
pr ov in ce ,
19 67 - A t Th an h Th o, Q ua ng Ti n
Ja nu ar y 15 , to gi ve th em
sh oo t a m er ch an t w he n he re fu se s
co m m un is ts
tw o ox en .
rc e th ei r
, 19 67 - Se ve ra l co m m un is ts fo
Ja nu ar y 21 fo r
ar la c pr ov in ce , ga th er th e pe op le
D
w ay in to B uo n H o, m en .
ag an da le ct ur e; ki dn ap si x yo un g
a pr op
, Q ua ng
67 C om m un is ts ra id Li eu T ri
Fe br ua ry 6, 19 he r an d a lo ca l of
fi ci al .
an d ab du ct a te ac
Ti n p- ov in ce ,
lle d.
Th e te ac he r is ki
h
A gr en ad e is th ro w n on to th e po rc
-
Fe br ua ry 6, 19 67 ch ie f is en te rt ai ni ng a
gr ou p
pu ty pr ov in ce
w he re K on tu rn de ef of Ed u-
es e of fi ci al s. Th e pr O vi nc ia l C hi
of So ut h V ie tn am e C hi ef of M on ta gn
ar d A ff ai rs
lle d in st an tly ; th t ot he rs
ca tio n is ki VI Ou nd s th e ne xt da y. Ei gh
al di e of
an d an ot he r of fi ci
w ou nd ed .
ar e se ri ou sl y
er s
- O nl y tw o ba dl y w ou nd ed pr is on
M ar ch 4, 19 67 Th o tie 12
m m un is t pr is on gu ar ds ne ar C an
su rv iv e as co to ge th er , sh oo t an
d st ab th em
tn am es e ca pt iv es ps ;
So ut h V ie in g So ut h V ie tn am es e tr oo
ad va nc
be fo re fl ee in g fr om ha vi ng th ei r th ro at s cu
t.
liv e de sp ite
bo th su rv iv or s
m ud er
- In a no ct ur na l ra id , te rr or is ts
M ar ch 5, 19 67 op m en t w or ke rs in
V in h Ph u,
ol ut io na ry D ev el op -
tw o yo un g R ev di tio na l R ev ol ut io na ry D ev el
. Se ve n ad
Ph u Y en pr ov in ce lle d in th e en su in g gu nf ig
ht an d
rs ar e ki
m en t te am m em be id is th e 11 3t h at ta ck on
R ev ol u-
ed . Th e ra
fo ur ar e w ou nd rs si nc e th e fi rs t
of th e ye ar .
el op m en t w or ke
tio na ry D ev
-------
105
Nam
Apri l 16, 1967 - A squad enter s Cam Ha, Quan g
child is
p:'ovi nce and murd ers an elect ion cand idate . One
kille d and three civili ans are woun ded.
et,
Apri l 26, 1967 - Nguy en Cam, chief of Ba Dan haml
Cam
Quan g Nam provi nce, is shot and kille d by a terro rist.
had been a cand idate in recen t elect ions.
e
May 10, 1967 - A bus loade d with South Vietn ames
h, Phu
civili ans runs over a land mine near Than Bach Thac
r and five
Bon provi nce. One passe nger is killed ; the drive
passe nger s are woun ded.
!viay 11, 1967 - More than 200 docto rs and medi cal
victi ms
work ers of the Repu blic of South Viet- Nam have been
th Secre -
of the comm unist s in the past 10 year s, State Heal
nizat ion
tary Dr. Tran Van Lu-Y tells the Worl d Heal th Orga
been killed
in Gene va. He says 211 mem ber s of his staff have
hosp itals
or kidna ped; 174 dispe nsari es, mate rnity home s and
d.
destr oyed ; 40 ambu lance s mine d or mach ine-g unne
106
1 girl a hand
"get out the vote" camp aign, a terro rist gives a smal
it caref ul1y
gren ade with the pin extra cted and tells her to carry
s the gre-
to her teach er. At the class room door the child drop
nade , killin g hers elf and injur ing nine child ren.
when
Augu st 24, 1967 - Terr orist s kil1 one and woun d four
e polic eman in
they deton ate a char ge at the home of a Vietn ames
Can Tho, Phon g Dinh prov ince.
are
Augu st 26, 1967 - Twen ty-tw o civil ians die and six
prov ince.
injur ed when their bus strik es a mine in Kien Hoa
sena te
Augu st 27, 1967 - A week befo re presi dent ial and
l1ess rifle
elect ions, terro rists step up their activ ities . A recoi
227. Ten die
and mort ar attac k On Can Tho kills 46 and injur es
Deve lopm ent
and ten are injur ed in an attac k on a Revo lutio nary
inclu ding
team in Phuo c Long prov ince. Four teen civil ians,
of Ban Me
five child ren, are woun ded by mort ar fire south east
is woun ded
Thuo t, Darl ac prov ince. Two civil ians die and one
civil ians are
in an attac k On a haml et in Binh Long prov ince. Six
ince.
kidna ped from Phuo c Hung vil1a ge in Thua Thie n prov
four
Augu st 29, 1967 - Grou ps of comm unist s infil trate
kil1 two
haml ets in Than h Binh distr ict, Quan g Nam prov ince,
chief .
civil ians and abdu ct six, inclu ding an inter -fam ily
crate rs
Sept embe r I, 1967 - Terr orist explo sives blast six
ing al1 vehic ular
in Natio nal Rout e 4 in Dinh Tuon g prov ince, stopp
bus whic h runs
traff ic exce pt a South Vietn ames e army ambu lance
ing 23.
over a pres sure mine , kil1in g 13 pass enge rs, injur
Hoa,
Sept embe r 3, 1967 - Shor tly after pol1s open in Tuy
n in a
Phu Yen prov ince, comm unist s deton ate a bomb hidde
woun ded.
pol1i ng place . Thre e vote rs are kille d and 42 are
ings, claim
Elec tion morn ing attac ks, inclu ding long -rang e shell
48 lives .
in Quan g
Nove mber 8, 1967 - The Ky Chan h refug ee cente r
perso ns,
Tin prov ince is infil trate d by terro rists who kill four
fire the camp 's
woun d nine othe rs and kidna p nine more ; they also
scho ol.
ed
Dece mber 5, 1967 - A name that shou ld be reme mber
108
i
Dece tnber 16, 1967 - Durin g the int.er tniss ion at a class
appe ars on
cal dratn a at' the Univ ersity of Saigo n, a cotnt nunis t
A stude nt
stage and begin s a propa gand a speec h abou t the NLF.
ach. Two
attetn pts to clitnb to the stage and is shot in the stotn
other stude nts are shot in the tnele e that follow s.
s Tatn
Janu ary 20, 1968 - An artne d propa gand a teatn enter
a propa gand a
Quan , Binh Dinh Provi nce, gathe rs 100 peop le for
shot to death .
sessi on; one protn inent villag e elder objec ts and is
Vinh
Apri l 6, 1968 - A band of cotnt nunis ts enter s That
piast ers
Dong , Tay Ninh provi nce; they sell seve ral thous and
a schoo l
wort h of "war bond s" and then depa rt, takin g with thetn
w and six
teach er, the hatnl et chief 's two daug hters and nephe
other tnale s age 15 or 16.
indis -
May 5 - June 22, 1968 - Sotne 417 rock ets are fired
ed Four th
critn inate ly into Saigo n, chief ly in the dense ly-po pulat
122tn tn
Distr ict. The rock ets are 107tn tn Chin ese-t nade and
Sovi et-tn ade. Resu lt: 115 dead, 528 hosp italiz ed.
c on
May 29, 1968 - A band of cotnt nunis ts stops all traffi
ped,
Rout e 155 in Vinh Binh provi nce; 50 civili ans are kidna
-whe eled
inclu ding a Prote stant tnini ster; 2 buse s and 28 three
taxis are burn ed.
refug ee
June 28, 1968 - A tnajo r attac k is tnade again st the
. In all,
cente r and fishin g villag e of Son Tra, south of Da Nang
and tnach ine
88 perso ns are killed and 103 are woun ded by tnort ar
hotne s are
gun fire, grena des and explo sive charg es. Sotne 450
hotne less.
destr oyed leavi ng 3, 000 of the 5, 000 perso ns there
r are fired
Late r, villa gers gathe ring batnb oo to rebui ld the cente
on frotn atnbu sh.
of thetn
July 28, 1968 - Four gun-w ieldin g terro rists , two
rootn of
wotn en, deton ate a 60-po und plast ique charg e in city
Chin ese-
Chol on Daily News , tnost protn inent of city' s seven
build ing;
langu age news pape rs, after orde ring work ers out of
the four escap e befor e polic e arriv e.
ion's
Septe tnber 1, 1968 - Doct ors at the Atne rical Divis
en have been
27th Surg ical Hosp ital repo rt two Mont agna rd wOtn
deter tnine d
brou ght in for treat tnent for adva nced anetn ia. It is
no
March 13, 1969 - Kon Sitiu and Kon Bobanh, two Monta-
gnard villages in Kontum province, are raided by terrorists; 15
persons killed; 23 kidnaped, two of whom are later executed;
three long-houses, a church and a school burned. A hamlet
chief is beaten to death. Survivors say the communists' expla-
nation is: "We are teaching you nut to cooperate with the govern-
Illent. II
April 16, 1969 - The Hoa Dai refugee center in Binh Dinh
province is invaded by an armed propaganda team. The refugees
are urged to return to their former (communist dominated) village,
but refuse; the communists burn 146 houses.
Footnotes
Big-Unit War - The war so far fought chiefly in the highlands and
along the 17th parallel that separates North frotn South Viet-Natn.
zone along
DMZ - Dem ilitar ized Zone - The three -mile wide
Nam .
the l7th para llel separ ating Nort h from South Viet-
Viet- Nam .
DRV - Dem ocrat ic Repu blic of Viet- Nam , i. e., North
"pias ter" by
Dong - Vietn ames e unit of mone y, usua lly term ed
forei gner s.
of revol u-
First , Seco nd and Third Stage s - The three phas es
tiona ry guer rilla war as outli ned by:
Mao: 1) The enem y's strat egic offen sive and our strat egic
defen sive.
2) The enem y's strat egic conso lidati on and our
prep arati on for the coun ter-o ffens ive.
3) Our strat egic coun ter-o ffens ive and the enem
y's
strat egic retre at.
l myth of the
Gene ral Upri sing (Tong Khoi Nghia ) - Majo r socia
unist socia l
Vietn ames e comm unist s, simi lar to the early comm
loat, whic h
myth of the gene ral strik e. Also used is noi day dong
mean s essen tially the same thing .
; a Budd hist
Roa Rao - Relig ious sect uniqu e to South Viet- Nam
in its milit ancy .
varia nt diffe ring chief ly from other Budd hist sects
124
Hoi Chanh - TerlTl for a person who cOlTles in under the GVN
Chieu Hoi or National Reconciliation progralTl.
Special War - Name used by the communists for the type of war
being fought in South Viet-Nam. They define it as an imperialist
war for the purpose of colonization but in which the fighting is
done by "comprador natives" or "lackeys" rather than by soldiers
of the colonizing nation.
Viet Cong - Imprecise but now universally employed term for the
communist forces in South Viet-Nam.
***
INDEX TO MAP OF HUE INDICATING MAJOR BODY FINDS
4 - Cho Thong
6 - Thien Ham
7 - Dong Gi
Second Finds
a - Vinh Luu
b - Le Xa Dong
c - Xuan 0
10 - Le Xa Tay
Third Find
Fourth Finds
He has worked as a journalist in the United States and Asia. and for
the United Nations as a civilian during the Korean war. He has been an
officer of the United States [nformation Agency since 1958 when he covered
the White House for the Voice of America. Subsequent assignments have
taken him to Viet-Nam and to Tokyo where he is currently serving as the
Special Assistant for Political Military Affairs to the director of the United
States Information Service in Japan.