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derivative filename/jpeg
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363-02322 to 363-02328.pdf
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Digital Object Identifier
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363-02322 to 363-02328
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Title
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First article on the Communist-led Buddhist movement
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Description
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Original title: "buddhists-Part I." Article 1 in a 2 part series on the Communist-led Buddhist movement
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Transcript
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deepe
buddhist-Part I-page 1
Doc. 17, 1964
1000The Communist-led Buddhist movement has deolerod
on irreversible state of total r on the American-backed government
of Prime Minister Tron Van Enong, roliable na obervers indicate.
Perhaps less noticed but more significent, the powerful
Buddhist politico-priests have doolared war on the legal mochaniamo
which would soloot the future gov any future government.
Two other powerful forces the Vietnamese armed forces and
Americanere trying to arbitrato the differences between the two
verwing compo..
The olde ere heavi
But, hopes for age-old chorub-faced
Prime Minister winning the battle the question is whether he will
hove the opportunity and ryb or to crackdown positively on the
"playing the Communist g000,
Buddhists leadership, which he considers pro-Communist, before he
falls.
(More)
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- Page 2
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deepe
buddhists Part I-page 2
dec. 17, 1964
The predictions of bloodshed and violence are now more
than idle ak speculation and coffeehouse ohatter. Prime Minister Huong
has personally been warned of "blood consequences by members of the
official high High National Council--and the predictions of a coup d'etat
and turmoil has been discussed by members of the Council during official
meetings, according to reliable sources.
Observers here believe the one other powerful force in the
country-the Communist Viet Cong-are waiting for the showdown with glee,
knowing that any turn of events will may help them profit thom.
The powerful Buddhist oppositionist movement lead by
skilled political-priests Thich Tri Quang and Thich Tem Chau sparked
the overthrow of the regime of Ngo Dinh Diem, a Catholic, last year
and were implicated in the "demi-coup" which toppled Maj. Gen.
Nguyen Khanh from the Prime Minister's Office during later
August student demonstrations.
The question of who and what government would follow Fuong
should he fall is still considered speculative. However, observers
here view as especially significant the re-emergence of an Armed Forces
Council-hich they interprete as being a de facto military junta
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doopo
buddhiste Part I-page 3
dec. 17, 1964
Should the Huong government-and the legal apparatus for
selecting future governments-be toppled, Vietnam's third military
Junte in thirteen months is considered likely to
Jettison General Khanh into civilian authority again.
In attempts to quicken the pece and intensity of their
fight against the Buong coverment, the politico- Duddhist politico-
prieste have launched a sories of hunger strikes to be coupled with their
constant car of communiques." The short-term expectations are that the
next move of the Buddhist leadership would include a brillian
brilliant demonstration of saffron-robed monks to the Presidential
Palace to protect against the goverment; perhaps the hunger strikes
would be shifted to the provinces and to include the Buddhist laitys
perhaps a dirbin Buddhist organiza association of disabled var veterans
would launch a protest march.
Since the government has declared demonstrations illegal and
subject to being stopped by force, and would be in en embarrassing
position to arrest a peaceful dononstration of Buddhist bonses or
disabled war veterans.
(Moro)
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deepe
buddhists Part I-page 4
dec. 17, 1964
Buddhist sources indicate that this phase of non-violence and
non-cooperation with the goe government might well include another
round of flaming protest suicides as occurred last year against
President Diem. While considered a propaganda z weapon and a political
threat at this point, Buddhist sources cxxex are now skilfil skilfully
circulating names of monks who have volunteered to turn themselves
alive ineludi which eh enhances their public prestiage-including
prostiage-inc
one named Thich Ho Giac, a youthful judo expert who is deputy of
the Buddhist chaplain's corps in the Armed Forces and widely considered
by government security forces as a Communist cadre..
These current Buddhist tactics are roughly remin equivalent
to the semi-ill semi-legal struggle often used by the Communists-to
provoke the government to make a stand on issues that they have not
clearly authorized, but yet not olearly banned--as in the case of
war veterans riding in trishaws in a protest demonstration.
WORRIED
"These are all the things they can do in phase two," one
high-ranking Vietnamese government official exclaimed. "When they get
to the final phase God help us.' Anything can hpapp happen then."
(More)
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deepe
buddhist-Part I-page 5
dec. 17, 1964
IN
Recent days
The Buddhists immem have intensified their propaganda
effort and them changed the course of their skilfully maneuvered
campaign since Prime Minister Huong entered *x office on November 1.
WAS
At that time the central point of their attacks were against several
x unnamed ministers in the government.
This line continued
until the violent, bloody student demonstrations of late November
Political Bun
when the began to unroll a scathing campaign ags against the
Prime Minister himself,,
Romanoxi waxmmakam blaming him for
naming an "anti-revolutionary" government, for "oppressing"
student demonstrators in order to preserve order security in Saigon,
a nd then ve for imposing martial law. They also accused him of
femeninam separatism by favoring those, like himself, who were born
im the Mekong Delta region of the country, once known as Cochinchina.
Last weeks weekend, however, im a series of masterfully
written, precisely worded communiques, the Buddhists shifted tactics
byy completely ignami ir ignoring the existence of Huong but instead
concentrated their fire on the supporters and the creators of Huong.
his supporters and--and his creators.
The three pillars of the Huong regime are, the Prime Minister
the Chief of State Phan Khao Suu and
and his Cabinet, the 16 man High National Council which roughly operates
like the United
tes Senate but
ho has extensive powers in
But both the High National Council and the Chief of
Sta te have extensive powers in approving the Prime Minister, ratifying
his Cabinet and in drawing up procedures for the future National Congress
which would draft the permanent Constitution.
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deepe
buddhist--Part I--page 6
dec. 17, 1964
Counts! Clution
The Buddhists then attacked by name a leading pe
CICLOS
INFLUENCE
the High National Council who controls enough votes to
prevent a non-confidence vote against the government.
A delegation
of High National Council mon reportedly met a ranking Buddhist
tim
leader and asked them that if a non-confidence vote were
Agairst
Huong wore out begally out ousted--who would the Buddhist ant as their
the suceeding Prime Minister. The Buddhist leader reportedly replied
the movement did not wantomimem care to name the next Prime Ministerp--
but simply wanted He Huong out of office. The High National Council
reportedly gave up in disgust and decided to stick with Huong.
Simultaneously,
the Buddhists have launched a whispering
campaign against Ph the Chief of State and then decided to
confent confront Huong's strongest outside support the United States.
In a letter to Ambassador Taylor-which was censored in the Vietnamese
local press but widely circulated by the Buddhists in mimeographed
Politicaft
lea flet form--the Buddhists asserted they held the United States
responsible for deciding whether the Huong government survived or fell.
Thumimahiomiomm While the letter was promptly dismissed as Buddhist
red this line of reasoning was promptly
propaganda
By official Americans
dismissed as Buddhist propaganda,
even the most anti-Communist, anti-
Buddhist Vietnamese agreed that the support of the American government
WAS
is the first prerequisite for any future gove
goverment.
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Coope
Buddhist-Part I-page 7
The Buddhist letter to Taylor last mla wook-ass ontod a
common hopo-and myth--that had circulated in Snigon for months-that the
two wily monts, the co-anlled modernte Tan Chau and the so-called
extremist ri quang, could be split from each other with the
loadership and rank-and-file falling into the moderate ranks.
Buong, backed up by an intensive propaganda campaign
launched by American and other foreign officials, attempted at all cost
to split the two ancotio morks by orenting personal rivalries and divisions.
At the & ond of last vool, however, both more patiently enduring a
48-hour hunger strike in pretent against Buongwani indirootly agninet
the norionne
This final act by Tri Thich Tri Quang-considered to be
pro-Communist then cove rise to a second and ourront myth that if
She had not lost Tam Cahu Chatboth of them had lost the mass
their mans mupporte
Tomorrows Buddhist Hose Support.
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Date
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1964, Dec. 17
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Subject
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Vietnam, 1961-1975; Protest movements; Buddhists--Political activity; Communism
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Location
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Saigon, South Vietnam
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Coordinates
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10.8231; 106.6297
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Size
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20 x 25 cm
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Container
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B119, F15
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Format
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dispatches
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Collection Number
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MS 363
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Collection Title
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Beverly Deepe Keever, Journalism Papers
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Creator
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Keever, Beverly Deepe
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Collector
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Keever, Beverly Deepe
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Copyright Information
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These images are for educational use only. To inquire about usage or publication, please contact Archives & Special Collections.
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Publisher
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Archives & Special Collections
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Language
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English
