PAGE SIX THE MICHIGAN DAII:V THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 1967 PAGE SIX THE MICHIGAN DAILY THURSDAY. JANUARY 12. 1967 :: ; .... :> 0 4B SALE-a few pairs of ETIENNE AIGNER linen and leather pumps and casuals-25% off the regular price. John Leidy Shop 601 and 607 E. Liberty St. NO 8-6779 Ann Arbor ,! > s; < - r >; n f s::: <: >:: ?h. "'>k. :' > : . ' k fi :;.lk. w:4U i: { .{ ;: , ,{{'> Esc: :"i i y t# }.# '% i ?2 ; Sri ;;::: r. t EDITOR'S NOTE: Pacification of theVietnamese countrysidetand se- curing the allegiance of the peo- ple for the Saigon government are basic objectives of American policy in South Viet Nam but the efforts have largely failed. In this second article of a five-part series, Asso- ciated Press reporter Peter Arnett analyzes some of the reasons for the shortcoming. By PETER ARNETT SAIGON (M)- The history of pacification in South Vietnam is a chronicle of grand schemes crumbling, of the boundless energy of talented advisers evaporating. It is also a tale of the corrup- tion of officials at the grass roots destroying what a series of pater- nalistic and inept Saigon govern- ments were reluctantly trying to implement from the top. The battle "for the hearts and minds of the people" in Vietnam has often been a travesty of mis- directed and incomplete effort, of statistical illusions and false op- timism. Current Criticism These harsh judgments have been borne out only too well by recent history. Current Vietnam- ese leaders have poured scorn on the efforts of theirapredecessors. American officials are again re- modeling the whole pacification apparatus. The pattern of pacification seems to recur as an Oriental treadmill powered by planners who envisage bigger schemes costing more mon- ey. They never seem to go any- where. The late President Ngo Dinh Diem 'put the first foot on the modern pacification treadmill. From his takeover in 1954, Diem attempted to adjust Vietnam's an- cient feudal structure to the needs of social progress. He was ham- pered at every turn by the heri- tage of French colonial rule, by the constant undermining of his program by murderous Commu- nist cadres in the countryside, and eventually by his own introver- sion, which trapped him in a the- oretical world of his own. Diem's Schemes Diem tried four major recon- struction schemes to restore or- der in rural areas torn by war. All failed. Diem set out to abolish the in- justices of land tenure and the hopelessness of the peasant's lot with an elaborate land reform program. But by the end of 1962 only about one-third of the land sup- posed to have changed hands ac- tually had done so, and only about 10 per cent of more than one mil- lion tenant families had obtained' any of it. The major land reform prob-- lef stemmed from Diem's insis- tence that the peasants buy the land he gave them. The Commu- nist Viet Cong gave it to the peas- antry for nothing. Agroville Program Diem launched his so-called Ag- roville program late in 1959, again on a wave of high idealism which, according to one writer here at the time, "was frequently distorted into narrow-minded tyr- anny in practice by province chiefs who played a fatal role." Diem planned to build 100 agro- villes, each holding 4,000 people and self-sustaining. The idea was suggested by the Chinese commune system, and Diem viewed it as a tool for the economic develop- ment of rural areas. Only 20 agrovilles were complet- ed because their inhabitants re- sented having to leave their old villages, literally carrying their houses on their backs to be used in the new agrovilles. Only a few dollars of compensation were paid, and the new farm lands had to be purchased by the settlers. Diem attempted a rent control program that was enforced only sporadically and eventually disap- peared in 1963 when the Commu- nists openly took over much of the countryside. Strategic Hamlets Diem then set out on his most ambitious scheme to win over the population. He would do this with strategic hamlets, a program ad- ministered with fanatical zeal by his brother, Ngo Dinh Nhu. Nhu used to say: "Communism for meaningful and systematic so- settlement, and on a less grandi- is not an abstract ideology. It is a continuous action. Once the ac- tion is interrupted the whole pro- cess breaks down. That is what we are doing in the strategic ham- lets." cial welfare work. The phraseE "winning the hearts and minds of the people" became popular in those days. Nhu saw the hamlets differently. They were ideal for population The Vietnamese government control, for gathering taxes, keep- went into mass production of stra- ing dossiers, checking loyalties. tegic hamlets, decreeing they must Patronage was distributed to be built everywhere, even in re- those who collaborated. gions where they could not be de- The Viet Cong took over many fended. hamlets. The program was stag- The American view of the stra- gering to failure late in 1963 when tegic hamlet differed considerably the government was overthrown from Ngo Dinh Nhu's. The reloca- and Diem and Nhu were killed. tion of millions of the rural popu- Other 'Plans' lation, the building of hamlets The new regimes ordered the surrounded by barbed wire, mud hamlet fences torn down. A new walls, a double row of spiked bam- pacification program called "New boo sticks and a moat, were seen Life Hamlets" was introduced, by Americans as an opportunity with less emphasis on forcible re- Pacification of VietNam: Why It Has Failed ose scale, Then followed "operation Oil Spot," which theoretically paci- fied one area in a province and spread from there like water on oil. Operation Hop Tac followed. It envisaged pacification flowing out into the countryside from Saigon, creating a pacified belt running from the capital to the Cambodi- an border and breaking the Viet Cong supply lines between the Mekong delta and the North. All these failed because of fal- tering Saigon leadership. Revolutionary Development was born in 1966. and the 1967 pro- gram will gamble heavily on this concept--basically reformed stra- tegic hamlets. *1 MOSCOW WARY: 'Struggle Continues in China PETITIONS DUE FRIDAY For THE PRESIDENTIAL COMMISSION and THE DRAFT COMMITTEE Petitions Available at SGC Offices 1546 SAB By WILLIAM L. RYAN Associated Press special Correspondent Moscow, with a great deal riding on the outcome, evidently expects Red China's power strug- gle to end soon in a result blasting any change in the foreseeable fu- ture for a Soviet-Chinese recon- ciliation. Communist bloc observers do not rule out thereafter the possi- bility of grave Soviet-Chinese in- cidents, perhaps taking the form of deliberate Chinese provocations on Soviet borders. An indication of offical Moscow thinking was provided in a long article carried by Red Star, the Soviet Defense Ministry news- paper. Shock Towards China Soviet soldiers, it said-as if preparing them for. the outcome in Peking-"cannot fail to be shocked" at the dominant Chinese group's attitude toward the Soviet Union which "raises questions in the minds of Soviet servicemen," For a long time Moscow has carefully watched the struggle. Should the side headed by men like President Liu Shao-chi and the party general secretary, Ten Hsiao-ping, come out on top, there would be a change of healing some of the scar inflicted by the long Peking-Moscow feud. If the side headed by Defense Minister Lin Piao wins, the chances for Moscow-Peking co- operation would virtually evapo- rate. Too many bridges have been burned, too much has been said and done. Lin Seen As Victor It appears now that Communist observers see Lin Piao as the win- ner. They say it is not a question r NATIONAL TEACHER EXAMINATIONS Chicago Public Schools will use the scores as part of their 1967 CERTIFICATE EXAMINATIONS for ELEMENTARY TEACHERS Filing Deadline is Feb. 17, 1967 (NTE Registration) (Direct scores to Chicago Board of Examiners) Filing Deadline is NOON, April 5, 1967 (Chicago Application, Ex. 5) Details in PLACEMENT OFFICE or Write for the packet to:. CHICAGO BOARD OF EXAMINERS Chicago Public Schools-Room 624 228 N. LaSalle Street Chicago, Illinois , 60601 FLOWER FANTASY The Revolutionary fj Paper- Fashion- Paper Party Dresses. Sleeveless-A-Line Shifts DISPOSABLE fashions for Entertaining, Lounging,; Traveling, Shopping. Fire Resistant, Can be wornV six or seven times. Available in sizes Petite: 4-6 - Small: 8-10 Medium: 12-14 Large: 16-18: $3.507 .r f -107-309 S. State Street of who will win but when the is- sue will be finally decided. Some astute observers of the Peking scene say the decision is likely to come before the winter is out. The way the European and Soviet Communist observers see the China struggle, Lin Piao, claiming the support of party Chairman Mao Tse-tung and the right to interpret his "thinking," in reality heads a minority, but an extremely powerful one which soon, in effect, is likely to become the majority. This faction is attacking heavily at its opposition's stronghold- the ranks of the factory workers. President Liu and Secretary Teng have been strong in the All-China Federation of Trade Unions which they created. But the Lin faction apparently has won control of the People's Liberation Army after a struggle which began as long ago as 1958. They have purged from its com- mand structure the professional army officers who, in the interests of a modern armed force, wanted to retain good relations with the Soviet Union, its primary source of the wherewithal. The profes- sionals have been replaced by or made subordinate to political of- ficers. This is the way the Red Star article sees it. The Chinese party, Red Star, said, has become "the pupil of the army," and the army, in turn, is in control of the teenage Red Guards who are an important in- strument of power for Lin. Red Star says the army guides the Red Guards, drills them, supports their actions, provides them with uniforms and in fact makes them a reserve of the PLA. Bring Entries i FOR STU DENT ART DISPLAY of the, Creative Arts Festival to the UAC office Wed., Jan. 11-Wed., Jan. 18-10 a.m.-4 p.m. ANY MEDIA for further information contact Department of Art at A&D Building iI r presents UNION-LEAGUE Bouldng ieder Discussion "THE ROLE OF THE AMERICAN WOMAN: IDLE IDOL?" ELISE BOULDING, consultant to the international executive of the Woman's International League For Peace and Freedom, will have a discussion with LESLIE FIEDLER, our Writer-in- 7. ii 7 Miss J follows the Southern route to sunshine in Viva Americana's little rounded-toe kidskin pump, the very epitome of easy simplicity in spring-spirited shades. Pink, celery or bone;basic black or navy blue. x .nn 0 I I 0