‘Downed pirates realize Vietnam well defended By GENRIKH BOROVIK HANOI Photographs of many of them are glued on post- ers. The posters say that 23 B-52 bombers were shot down over Hanoi during the 12-day . bombing of the DRV capital. This is a great victory for the Hanoi air-defense force, for which it has been awarded the highest order of the DRV “For Battle Exploits.” And below these communications are the faces of those pilots who bomb- ed Hanoi, dropped bombs on. the ancient street of Kham Thien and destroyed a school and a kindergarten in the settle- ment of Na Duong. Now they wear striped prison pajamas. And what they took along going to bomb can be seen at a_ special exhibition: overalls, a helmet, a mosquito net which looks more like a net for catching crayfish, high boots, a holster and flags with inscrip- tions in Vietnamese: “Give me ‘ please something to eat,” “Spare my life please,” and so on. The remnants of their aircraft may be seen in city streets. The Vietnamese -handicraftsmen have long found a use for the bits of the aircraft metal. They are making cigarette lighters, combs, and ash trays. Each such article bears an honest inscrip- tion: “Made of an American B-52 Aircraft.” The pieces look fine, much finer than when all that is flying. Catching Pirates The faces of many pilots in the photographs are recognized by ‘the people of Hanoi. Those who were taken prisoner in the city itself or on the outskirts. Local inhabitants, when the situ- ation allowed, and even under the bombs, were always active in catching the pirates. Never before have so many American fliers been captured in so short a period of time—12 days, in fact. Judging by Ame- rican sources, in these 12 days alone the number of all airmen taken prisoner in the DRV since 1964 has increased by 16%. A great -deal indeed has changed since 1964. The chang- es have affected both the air- defense services and the com-— bat skills of Vietnamese missile- men and ack-ack personnel, that have grown considerably. There have been changes, too, incidentally in the “downed” behavior of the American pirates. At half past ten in the eve- ning of December 26, when the bombing of Hanoi was particu- larly intensive, continual and barbarous, a B-52 pilot came down tumbling into one of the ponds in the southern part of the capital. The pirate offered no resistance to the local inha- bitants, obeyed all orders and surrendered his arms at once. (By the way, none of the fliers who were shot down over Hanoi, I was told, put up any resistance when taken prisoner.) Two Days in Guam The first words of this pilot as people came running up to him (there was one who had some knowledge of English) were: “I beg you to spare me my life.” Then he said immediately that it was only two days be- fore that he had arrived at the war base of Guam, that it was ‘his first mission over Vietnam and that he learned that he was ‘flying to Hanoi only 30 minutes before the sorties, that he was brought down very soon and had no time to press the bomb release button and that he was prepared to fulfil any commands from whoever they may come. Earlier, several years ago, the Vietnamese knew other pilots. Some of them were impudent and haughty and did not answer the questions when addressed by servicemen of junior rank. Those did not consider that they had been beaten and said that they were simply unlucky — were hit by a shell and now found themselves on_ earth. That, for example, was the con- duct of an American ace, Alva- rez, who was brought down on Aug. 5, 1964 over Hanoi. No More Leaflets There was a time when the pilots handed to the people who captured them leaflets in which it was printed in Vietnamese: “I am a fighter against commu- nism. My aircraft has met with -None of the American pilots is an accident by chance. My re- quest to local people is to pro- tect me, to hide me in time, to feed and then immediately to transport me to a safe place, preferably where American troops are stationed. For this the U.S., government will pay the person who renders these services 80,000 dongs.” But those days are long past. now interested in the military rank of a person who takes him prisoner, none seeks sympathy for a “fighter against commu- nism.” All of them to a man now readily reply to any ques- tions of any person, look con- fused and frightened and keep saying one and the same thing: “TI had no time to press the but- ton, I am not from a B-52...1 have never before bombed Viet- nam ... I have never before been in combat operations. I am against the war in Vietnam. I have just been sent here... I beg you to spare me my life se! Bodies in Pond By the way, there is no need to ask for this. Because when a pilot parachutes down to earth in the DRV alive, he is sure to remain alive although his life is often subjected to danger due to the hatred felt for him by local people on whom he was just dropping the bombs. < The flier fished out on Dec. 26 —out of the mud of the pond— did not of course know that two days before a bomb had fallen not far from that place. Its ex- plosion killed the family of a postman who lived there—his wife and’ six children. Three children were hurled away by the explosion wave. Their bodies were sought and found only on the third day—in that same pond. That tragic event was still before the eyes of everyone who lived there. One can therefore imagine the degree of hatred of the people for the air pirate who fell precisely into that pond. Whether he was telling the truth that he had no time to press the button, or was lying, no one knew. It was possible of course to suppose that every- thing told by him was a lie. If only because all American pilots now declare exactly this or something like it. But he was not even beaten. Two armed workers who cap- tured him were from a self- defense detachment, and they did everything to keep back the anger of the crowd until Peo- ple’s Army soldiers drove up. Two or three days before that people captured another pilot in a suburb of Hanoi. He began repeating that he was not from a B-52, but from an A-6 (which the Vietnamese call the “sea plunderer”). But just nearby the place where the parachutist came down, a B-52 fell. And everyone realized that the flier was lying. The self-defense ser- vicemen had to lock him in a cooperative’s shed in order to save him from the angered peo- 100,000 in Holland demo UTRECHT — About 100,000 of Dutch lawyers gavé people participated in a demon- support to this action. ple and to keep him there until the arrival of soldiers. Indeed, the behavior of Ame- rican airmen that are taken pri- soner has greatly changed. And the point is not that even the most thick-skulled of them have possibly begun to suspect that their barbarous actions have no justification, but also that the pirates have seen that their ac- tions do not remain unpunished. stration here Jan. 6 condemning the renewed U.S. bombing of the DRV. This was the largest demonstration in Holland since the end of World War II. The demonstration had the support of all Dutch political parties with the exception of the Liberals and Democratic ’70. Several important personalities, among them Cardinal Alfrink, leader of the Dutch Catholic church, and J. de Brauw, dean Coming from all acro: land, many by specially ‘ ed trains, the demon: marched under slogans 0 nam for the Vietnamese, the bombing throughout ¢ nam,” and “Nixon, Ss! treaty now.” After the main demons 30,000. marchers gathere¢ Irene Hal Fair Palace © a number of speakers war.