In response to the preliminary showing of film “The Vietnam War”

Dr. Nguyen Ngoc Sang

I was fortunate to receive invitation from the PBS television station and local library to join the discussion panel about the film “The Vietnam War” by Ken Burns and Lynn Novik, after ten years collecting documents for the 18 parts “Vietnam War”. The movie will be played on the 17 September, 2017 on the PBS.

Estimated around 200 people attended mostly American except me and my assistant, a young medical doctor Quyen Huynh. I felt uneasy but decided to accept the invitation. It was an opportunity to speak out for the service men of the Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam). This is not an easy task, especially my English.

After the movie, members of the discussion panel were asked a question. In the movie, a former NVA soldier was interviewed and he said that in the Vietnam War, there was no winner. The discussion monitor asked me, what do I think about this? Before answering, I expressed my point, to find out who was the winner, who was the loser, there were three principle views:

The goal for joining the war.

The casualties

Evaluation of the war.

The goal for joining the war

1. The US joined the war because wanted to control People Republic of China (PRC). According to Pentagon papers, an official study about the US involvement in Vietnam from 1945 to 1967 by Daniel Ellsberg and posted in the New York Times in 1971. The main reason was not protecting the independent of South Vietnam. Protecting the independent of South Vietnam lied inside the strategy of stopping the mainland China (PRC). This document longs about 4000 pages and was classified as top secret. It was declassified on the 4 of May, 2011 in the Richard Nixon library in California.

2. The goal for North Vietnam was to liberate South Vietnam by force as the first step for the expansion of communism in Southeast Asia, under the leadership of Ho Chi Minh, the leader of the SEA communist party since 1932. This is coincident with statement from the late General Secretary Le Duan “We fought the US for Soviet Union, China”.

3. The goal for the leaders of South Vietnam (RVN) was to defend the south against the north which received strong supports from Russia, China and Eastern Europe nations, and Cuba. The weaker South Vietnam accepted and request supports from the US and the free world.

B. The casualties

1. The US lost 58,307 service men, spent 168 billion of dollars (other source, 1,020 billion), 303,604 wounded and 1,948 missing in action. At the highest, the US had 543,000 men in Vietnam.

2. North Vietnam lost 950,765 men, nearly 600,000 wounded men. The number of missing in action was not clear but around 300,000. During the war, North Vietnam was listed as one of the five poorest countries in the world. The Vietnam War also caused death to 2 million Vietnamese civilians.

3. South Vietnam lost 275,000 men and 1,170,000 wounded soldiers. There was no account for missing in action, and surrendered on the 30 of April 1975.

C. Who won? Who Lost?

1. From my analysis above, the US as achieved the goal, controlling China. To me, the US won.

2. North Vietnam lost nearly 1 million men, 600,000 wounded and 300,000 missing in actions, 2 million innocent civilians. The cost was too high, they lost.

3. South Vietnam surrendered on the 30 of April, 1975 was also the looser.

According to General Frederick C. Wayand on an interview on June 12, 2006, the lost of Vietnam War not because of the service men but from the political leadership in Washington D.C.. They (RVN) won on the battle fields but lost from the betrayal of the Allied. But to me, the US has accomplished the goal of controlling China. They pulled out of the war by the costs of any sides including their own men.

My conclusion, both North and South Vietnam were losers. One auditor raised a question about the psychological effect of the war and I simply answered “The winners always consider the losers are enemies, even the war already ended 42 years.”

The movie still show old propaganda even the film producers spent 10 years in collecting war documents. The picture of Maj. Gen. Nguyen Ngoc Loan executed VC Bay Lop on the street of Saigon. The conviction of First Lt. William Calley killing 128 Vietnamese civilians, and the Napalm bombs caused casualties for Vietnamese villagers, etc… I told auditors that VC shelled mortars into elementary school Cai Lay on March 9, 1974 caused casualties for nearly 200 children, and why these film makers did not know this fact? During the Tet Offensive 1968, the communists murdered nearly 6,000 innocent people, this story had been well known to the world, but the PBS television station? The movie insisted that Dow Chemical making Napalm bomb for killing villagers. I told the auditors that was not true, the case Ms. Kim Phuc was a mistake such as US airplane mistakenly dropped a bomb on Chinese Embassy during the Kosovo War in 1999, also during the wars in Afghanistan, Syria, etc… also on friendly units. In the war, unfortunately, those mistakes happened.

After the panel discussion, Mr. Bill Laurie met me and said that the VC Bay Lop was a terrorist who killed 6 family members of RVN officers therefore executing Bay Lop did not violate Geneva Convention.

American might pulled out before 1969 if the US commanders had another military tactic differed than “Search and Destroy” that Gen. Westmoreland had deployed for some years. Many military analysts criticized the tactic using large, modern units in search for enemy’s units were not suitable. The NVA at that time tried to avoid US military power, and retreated deeper into the jungle, mountainous and neighboring countries Laos, Cambodia to preserve their strength.

If the US employed great generals like Harold K. Johnson, Frederick C. Weyand, etc…, probably American soldiers returned home earlier with lower casualty, after accomplished the goal of controlling China. Also the casualties on both sides of Vietnam would be lower.

The military assistant for South Vietnam had contributed to the US’s “hand cleaning” program. From 2.8 billion in 1973 to 1 billion for 1974 then 300 million for 1975. Finally, in December 1975, US Congress decided to cut all military assistant, 55 days later South Vietnam fell.

This movie only reflects one side story. It is not worth to watch. I hope, Burns and Novick read this article and look at the matter thoughtfully, so the public can see the real story of the Vietnam War.

Sept. 5, 2017

Dr. Nguyen Ngoc Sang - Trans VDH - Posting PH