Strive for Unification
Diem's regime did not agree with Hanoi to carry out the Geneva Agreements.
"He[Ngo Diem] is unpopular, and the more unpopular he is, the more American aid he will need to remain in power. And the more American aid he gets, the more of an American puppet he'll look and the less likely he is to regain popularity."
-Prime Minister Pham Van Dong, predicts correctly the fall of Diem's regime. Ho Chi Minh: On Revolution |
"Pham:'The situation is not yet ripe for a real negotiation. They [the South Vietnamese] don't really want to negotiate.'
Ho:'That is absolutely true. They are showing no intention to negotiate.'" -Ho and Pham answering to the question if they will negotiate. Ho Chi Minh: On Revolution |
The National Liberation Front(the Viet Cong) was made because of Diem and America's unwillingness to negotiate.
Ho believed war wasn't always about weapons. His strategy was guerrilla warfare, diplomacy, and propaganda (in Vietnam and America).
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"The Vietnamese people never confuse the justice-loving American people and the U.S. Governmet which has committed numerous crimes against them in the past ten years. Those very saboteurs of our nation's independence and freedom are also the people who have betrayed the Declaration of Independence of the United States which highlights the truth that 'all men are created equal,' and the unalienable Rights of man, viz 'Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.'"
-Ho's letter to a magazine editor. Propaganda. Written to U.S. public to create opposition to Vietnam War, which would force U.S. troops to leave Vietnam. Vietnam War: Primary Sources. |
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In foreign affairs Ho and his colleagues were firm in their desires, and gathered support from other communist nations.
"In your letter you have expressed the desire to act for a just peace. For this the United States must cease the war of aggression and withdraw their troops from South Vietnam, respect the right of the population of the South and of the Vietnamese nation to dispose of themselves, without foreign influence...this is the path that will allow the United States to get out of the war with honor." |
"The more throughly you defeat them, the more comfortable they feel. For example, you beat the French, and they became willing to negotiate with you..." |
Ho's health slowed him from working actively in the war.
"Spare Uncle the worry. We should not bother our supreme leader."
-Le Duan, one of Ho's colleagues, doesn't want Ho to worry. Ho Chi Minh: A Life.
-Le Duan, one of Ho's colleagues, doesn't want Ho to worry. Ho Chi Minh: A Life.
Since 1955 his role as a ceremonial figure grew, and was his primary function after 1965.
"His primary function during the mid-1960s was to serve as the beloved "Uncle Ho", visiting schools, factories, and collective farms to promote the cause of socialism and national unification." -William J.Duiker. Ho Chi Minh: A Life. |
Professor Fall describes the world's perspective on Ho.
youtube.com/watch?v=8qh_L0xT_nU
youtube.com/watch?v=8qh_L0xT_nU