Vietnam War 19641975 - Essay Example

The Viet Minh finally came to total power in 1975, after thirty four years of struggle and war, when they unified Vietnam as a single independent communist country after driving out the Americans and the French. France ruled almost all of Indochina from late 1800s and World War II. Many French colonists who built their own plantations on peasant land for own gain, experienced growing unrest among Vietnamese peasants. France reacted brutally by further decreasing freedom of speech and assembly by arresting protestors.

However, these actions were unsuccessful and unrest continued to increase. Many revolutionaries escaped to China. In 1924, the Vietnamese started to organize under the leadership of Ho Chi Minh. Minh created the Indochinese Communist Party in 1930. Throughout the 30s, Minh led Vietnam's growing independence movement from exile in the Soviet Union and China. However, a new enemy became involved. In 1940, Vietnam was invaded by Japan. The next year, Vietminh was formed under the guidance of Minh.

Its goal was to gain independence from foreign rule. After Japan was defeated by Allies in 1945, Minh's goal seemed to be fulfilled. On September 2, 1945, Ho Chi Minh declared Vietnam an independent nation. In 1956, a free elec. Thinking this could lead to trouble, South Vietnam's president Ngo Dinh Diem, a strong anti-Communist, refused to take part in the election. America thought Ho Chi Minh's popularity might result in a victory for him and also wanted the election to cancel. Eisenhower gave military aid to Diem for a stable reform government in the South.

Diem, however, broke his promise. He crushed any opposition and distributed little land. Diem, a Catholic, also restricted Buddhist practices. Buddhist cleric were killed or imprisoned and temples destroyed. Many Buddhists protested by burning themselves to death.By 1957, a Communist rebel known as the Vietcong was organized. They attacked the Diem government by assassinating government officials. Supported by Minh, Vietcong received military arms via network of paths along borders of Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia called the Ho Chi Minh Trail.

South Vietnam becomes less stabled, but Eisenhower administration did almost nothing. John Kennedy entered the White House in 1961. Criticized for being "soft" on Communism, Kennedy sent more financial aid to Diem's regime and military advisers to train South Vietnamese troops. Meanwhile, Diem's popularity dropped significantly because of corruption and failure to respond to calls for land reform. (Ang, 311) To fight the Vietcong, Diem initiated the strategic hamlet program by moving all villagers to protected areas.

Yet, many Vietnamese resented being moved from their home village.In 1950, the United States officially recognized the Saigon government, and to help out, President Truman sent troops over to train the South Vietnamese on how to use U.S. weapons while the French and North Vietnamese were building up their forces. In the spring of 1954, the North Vietnamese attacked a