Questions & Answers

(Continued from previous page)
Just 10 days before President
Kennedy was assassinated in
Dallas, a coup was carried out
in Saigon and Ngo Dinh Diem
and his notorious brother Nhu
were murdered.

Wilfred G. Burchett, in his
new book Vietnam: Inside Sto-
ry of the Guerilla War, em-
phasizes that it was “the un-
broken series of military defeats
that spelled the doom of the
Diemist regime, not the repres-
sion of Buddhists and students.”
He says Diem’s savage attacks
on the Buddhists, though not
the cause of his downfall, “prob-
ably fixed the date.”

Soon the junta genérals who

took over from Diem were over-
thrown in a coup by Nguyan
Khanh. This second coup was
followed by a third, a fourth, a
fifth . . . today the number is
eight . . . or is it nine? In any
case, the puppets fall like nine-
pins.
, Breadth of the anti-American
patriotic struggle in Vietnam
can be seen from the composi-
tion of parties and mass organ-
izations attending the Second
Congress of the South Vietnam
National Front for Liberation
held in January 1964:

Political parties: Democratic
Party, Radical Socialist Party,
Revolutionary People’s Party.

Mass_ organizations: Move-

ment for the Autonomy of the
High Plateau; Liberation Wo-
men’s Union; Liberation Stu-
dents’ Union; People’s Revolu-
tionary Youth Union; Liberation
Peasants’ Association; Patriotic
and Democratic Journalists’ As-
sociation; Liberation Writers
and Artists Association; Former
Resisters’ Association; Libera-
tion Red Cross.

Religious | groups: _ Buddhist,
Khmer Buddhist, Christian, Tay
Ninh, Cao Dai sects.

The National Front is a gov-
ernment in everything but name.
It governs two-thirds of South
Vietnam and half the popula-
tion; it has: “ambassadors”
abroad — in permanent bureaus
in Cuba, Algeria, Czechoslova-
kia, China, German Democratic
Republic and Indonesia.

*

What is
North Vietnam
doing ?

Vietnam is one country, not
two. Washington talks of North
Vietnam “aggression” but the
only aggressors in South Viet-
nam are the 23,500 American

troops (recently augmented by

3,500 U.S. Marines).
The people of Vietnam, North

VIEWS

I know of few wars fought more cruelly or more de-
structively, or with a greater display of naked cynicism,
than the war waged by the United States against the peas-
ant population of South Vietnam. It is a war which epito-
mizes the indifference to individual freedom, national sove-
reignty and popular well-being—which is so characteristic
of the world policy of the military and industrial groups
controlling the United States.

—LORD BERTRAND RUSSELL

Kk

I am sure the American people, if they know the true
facts, will feel that further bloodshed is unnecessary and
that negotiations alone can create conditions which would
enable the’United States to withdraw gracefully.

—U THANT, Secretary-General of the United Nations

* *

For the U.S, to involve itself in such a war {large

scale air and land war) in Asia would be an act of su-

preme folly. While the Warhawks would rejoice when it

began, the people would weep before it ended. There is no
tolerable alternative except a negotiated peace.

—WALTER LIPPMAN, U.S. columnist

* *
If (U.S. Defense Secretary) Rusk wants the North,
Vietnamese to observe the 1954 Geneva accords, he can
hardly object to the United States observing them also;
and one accord called for elections in North and South
Vietnam to permit the people themselves to choose whether
they wanted a divided or a unified country. On American
advice, the elections have never been held. There is good
reason to think that if they were held, the Saigon govern-
ment would lose them. What then becomes of the senten-
tious American claim to be defending the sacred freedom
of a free, democratic people? -

If Mr. Rusk wants the North Vietnamese to halt all
supplies or men flowing into South Vietnam, he can hardly
object to the United States doing the same.

From an editorial in the St. Louis Post-Despatch.

*

*

*

and South, consider the prob-
lems of ,Vietnam are the prob-
lems of the Vietnamese people;
in their hearts there is no boun-
dary. Vietnam is one; the divid-
ing line along the Ben Hai river
is drawn in water.

In a situation fraught with
danger to their independence
and sovereignty, the North Viet-
namese have showed consider-
able restraint. The Third Con-
gress of the Lao Dong Party
held in Hanoi in September,
1960 stressed that the rapid
building of socialism, the spee-
dy economic strengthening of
the North is the surest guaran-
tee that eventually their coun-
try will be reunified.

The U.S. White Paper which
set out to prove that Hanoi
directs the National Front libe-
ration struggle in South Viet-

nam, and supplies vast numbers,

of soldiers and, quantities of
arms, ended by proving just the
opposite.

As I. F. Stone’s Weekly of
March 8, 1965 pointed out, the
material of North origin cap-
tured during 18 months of fight-
ing consisted of 24 French sub-
machineguns “modified” in
North Vietnam, two machine-
guns made in North Vietnam,
16 helmets, a uniform and an
undisclosed number of- mess
kits, belts, sweaters and socks.

The fact is that the main mili-
tary activity has always been in
the deep South; the first libe-
rated area was the Ca Mau pen-
insula, the southernmost tip of
South Vietnam. ~

After five years of fighting
the White Paper (notes I. F.
Stone) was only able to cite six
cases of “Northern infiltrees.”

What is logical is that some
National Front officers, natives
of the South, received training
in the North. Before this war
started many of them were in
one army fighting against . the
French.

*
Why is the
US. escalating

the war?

The U.S. aim is to retain po-
litical and military control of
South Vietnam as a springboard
for aggression against rising na-
tionalist movements in South-
east Asia.

As seen through the eyes of
Washington and the Pentagon,
all peoples who strive to libe-
rate their countries from op-
pression, native or foreign, are
“Communists.” (Hence the U.S.
use of the term Viet Cong —
Vietnamese Communists — in-
stead of National Front for
Liberation.)

As Washington sees it, if they
are forced out of South Viet-
nam it will be the beginning of
the end of American influence
in the Far East. SEATO would
collapse,
apart, the U.S. would have to
get out of South Korea.- Long-
range plans for aggression
against China would have to be
scuttled.

Washington is determined to
hang on in South Vietnam, and

- take the risk of bombing North

Vietnam even though such esca-
lation of the war brings the
world to the brink of a nuclear
holocaust,

Malaysia would fall ~

*

What can Canadians do |
to save the peace?

Canada has a special respon-
sibility for the situation in Viet-
nam because our country, along
with India and Poland, is repre-
sented on the International Con-
trol Commission in Vietnam.

The International Control
Commission found the USS.
guilty of “violations of the
Geneva Agreements” for its ac-
tions of Feb. 7 bombing areas
in North Vietnam.

A report to Britain and the
Soviet Union, co-chairmen of
the Geneva conference on Indo-
china presented documents is-
sued by both sides on the
events and said: “The Interna-
tional Commission requests the
co-chairmen . to consider the
desirability of issuing an imme-
diate appeal=to all concerned
with a view to reducing tension
and preserving peace in Viet-
nam and taking whatever meas-
ures are necessary in order to
stem the deteriorating situa-
tion.”

The ICC majority report was
signed by India and Poland. Un-
fortunately, the Canadian mem-
ber issued a minority report
trying to excuse the American
bombings by the familiar charg-
es of North Vietnam infiltration
and aggression against South
Vietnam. :

Revealing evidence as to why
Canada plays this role is pro-
vided by Bruce Phillips of the
Ottawa Bureau of the Hamilton
Spectator.

Writing of Prime Minister
Pearson’s recent speech in New
York he points out that “in es-
sence,” Pearson makes “‘the U.S.
case, which contends that the
Viet Cong (sic) guerrillas in
South Vietnam are much less an
indigenous group of rebels than
the agents of North Vietnam.”

But, says Phillips, privately
Lester Pearson does not hold
this opinion. His personal views
are that the war would go on
“even if the North withdrew
every man and every gun”; he
“has doubts about the bombing
of North Vietnam”; that “‘final-
ly, there are serious doubts that
the U.S. is in South Vietnam
trying to help the Saigon gov-
ernment uphold its policy, ra-
ther than the Saigon govern-
ment being pressured to support
a policy which emanates from
Washington.”

Then Phillips continues with
this’ statement: “Mr. Pearson
has said none of these things
publicly. Nor is it likely any
other Canadian leader would do
so, because there are too many

bread and butter issu
auto and air agreemel
mous importance t
which preclude needl
gonisms between the
tries as long as
methods of communi
available.” :

And he goes on: “
of any response (to
speech about an “in
police force” in Vie
the State Departmen
occasion is perhaps
revealing thing abou
tentions in Vietnam,
one to wonder wheth
case, Mr. Pearson’s—
of persistent but pri
macy will meet with
cess?”

Putting all this bl
United States holds #
mic mortgage on Canaue
and more the U.S. hae
over our econornic liléy
Canadian governmen
willing to speak out
even on an issue su!
war in Vietnam wh
lead to world the
war, and the total d
of our country.

It is this situation
adian public opini
change just as the
tions of students and
Toronto, Ottawa and
have made it necé
Pearson to publicly
brutal and _ violent
Selma, Alabama.

The issue is peaceful |
tion or- nuclear annihi
There is no time t0

*

There is wide agree
this country that Cana
responsibility to insist ¥
reconvening of the Gel®
ference, that this is
should lead quickly t0 |
of the war, to the with?
U.S. forces, and to
ful setthement of the ©
the basis of the wish
Vietnamese people the

What is needed mo>"
expression of this oPY
every possible way;
letters and wires to m
Parliament, through !
from labor unions, a0!
ganizations of the P
through letters to the ©
newspapers across the ©
through peace mare
every other way in W
adians can express the!

as a public service.

Read the Pacific Tribune

___As United Nations Secretary - General U
reminded the world recently, the first casualty of
is truth. To help bring the truth about the
against the people of Vietnam to Canadians, the Y

- adian Tribune prepared these two pages of questi
and answers, which the Pacific Tribune has repr?

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March 19, 1965—PACIFIC TRIBUNE—Page ©