Transcripts For CSPAN3 A Nation Builds Under Fire 20161015 :

CSPAN3 A Nation Builds Under Fire October 15, 2016

Country. Now just take a look at this one. Throughout vietnam you see strong faces like this, determined and patient. The story, the hope in the determination of these brave people of South Vietnam and what they are doing to build on their hope. It has not been told as often as the story of war in their ravaged land. But it is just as true. Ere are some others. They are really building omething over there. They are building the foundations of a society in which they and their children can live in peace and freedom. They are doing this in the midst of an ugly war, forced on them by aggressors who want to control them. They are doing get with their muscle and their hearts. But they are doing it at the ballot box too. In hundreds of hamlets across the land, they are demonstrating demonstrating their faith. Faith in themselves and in their future. They are also showing their faith in us. Because we have taken our stand besides them. No one who really knows what these determined people are doing and the rightness of their cause. Nor can they doubt the rightness of our help. For we are making possible the conditions under which they can build their nation. Their effort to build that nation is a story that needs to be told. It is a story of men who prize freedom, and it is a story honoring them men who put their lives on the line for freedom. John wayne the story of vietnam today is the story of war. And of the men of different nations who fight that war to nd the enemys aggression. It is the story of wars affect on the people who lived in this troubled land. But the untold story of this historic moment in vietnam is one of heroic adventure. It is a revolutionary undertaking by the people of the republic of vietnam, to transform their National Life and construct out of the chaotic legacy of the past, a social order that will work for the betterment of all. It is the story of a people building a nation for themselves, and building it amidst a holocaust of war. John wayne a generation ago, not Many Americans could have said with certainty, where or what saigon was. Today, most cities in the world more urgently commands our attention. It is the capital city of a nation at war. The strangest war in which americans have ever been evolved involved. It is also the capital of a nation that is involved in a social revolution. Americas participation in that revolution is just as urgent as its involvement in the war. Being at capital city, saigon is the source of South Vietnams revolutionary effort. But you have to come out here on the countryside to see what it s all about. The Defense Department has asked me to help bring you this story of vietnams attempt to build tself into a nation. To do this, i have called on some expert help. This is lieutenant mark nelson, u. S. Navy. He is commander of a division that prevents infiltration of enemy troops along the coast. This is Sergeant Shelly blunt of the air force. Sergeant kim sanders with the Third Marine Amphibious force at denying danang. And spec five dale camry with the 25th infantry division. These fellows are stationed here and they know the country. At least in the special way that American Fighting men have come to know it. From their own experiences and observations they know the story and together we will try to give you an informed picture of what it is that is going on over ere. We are in the hamlet of , about 15 miles north of saigon. It is a peaceful looking rural community. Life goes on here, much as it has for hundreds of years in his part of the world. There is an operation going on a mile or two from here. And the peace and quiet of this Little Village is shattered by the sounds of war. The drones of helicopters overhead and every once in a while a rumble of all generally desperate hillary. Artillery. That is one thing you learn after being here in vietnam for a while. A war is never very far away. These hamlets and villages are the real soul of the country. 4 5 of the people of South Vietnam live in them. It is here in these dusty trails through the countryside, these huts and farmlands and jungles, that the thrust of vietnam great social revolution is directed. In vietnam, revolution is a doubleedged word. The enemy uses it, it is what they call the aggressive war they are using against the people over here. John wayne that is the story. There is nothing mysterious about the kind of revolution the enemy has in mind. Same thing we have seen in many parts of the world, ever since the communist revolution 50 years ago. Over here, they have killed over 20,000 civilian leaders. Now to the story of this civilian population. It is Public Knowledge that these people in their fight for freedom, have lost proportionately already more troops than we have lost in the whole of world war ii. Yet, in spite of this, there have always been men brave enough in this country to step forward and take the leadership from those who have been killed. It is these same brave people ho have had the will and the guts to conduct their own revolution, a real revolution for the betterment of their people. At the same time, they have been fighting a war for their very survival. The government in vietnam is launching a National Effort to defeat a pattern of social misery that has plagued the people of vietnam for generations. They intend to replace it with a society in which the needs of the people can be met. They call it revolution, and it certainly is. They call it nationbuilding, and it is that too. The people over here have never had very much and they want their share. They want the things that are important to them. That is what they mean by revolution, and what it is all about. They want a better life. They want social justice, but the guy said he would not call it that. As a matter of fact, he probably would not know what those words mean. But it is the same thing. He wants to be left alone. He is tired of being frightened, kicked around and beaten up. He wants some personal dignity, and he certainly does not get very much of that over here. These people my education, it is a key to the future for them. Health is another problem. Disease is a serious thing. Life expectancy is pretty low. The war helps that along. It sure does, but some of these people never get to see a doctor. You have to see the way the crowd around some of our medics. These people want dispensaries and clinics so they can take care of themselves and their family so they can live a little longer. John wayne social justice, if thats what you want to call it, it is desired of not want to be beaten up. Education for children, health facilities, the hunger for land and to make the landmark vulnerable. These are the wants of the people. These are the objectives of the vietnam revolution. They shoot anybody that does not believe them. Sometimes the people dont know who to believe. That is why the government has to make good on its promises right now. If they do not, the revolution is dead. But we cannot wait on it and we have to get this war won. If we dont, there will not be a nation to build. Yes, we and the South Vietnamese must win this war. The social revolution cannot be successful unless the people feel secure and safe from ommunist aggression. John wayne the enemy was proud of the technique they had developed for pursuing what they called wars of national liberation. Ho could stop him, not the americans, or so they thought. The leaders of the north vietnamese military forces said that the Organization Composition and training of American Forces were not fit to attack a revolutionary war. Guess they forgot 1776. Anyway, we americans must do something about revolution. We developed a revolutionary answer in the fields of these utthroat terrorists. The myth of viet cong invincibility is dead. The ground, see, and air team in vietnam has killed it. America decided a long time ago, in principle that they could stand in vietnam and lay the foundations for that decision when it recognized that aggression against the weak could never be permitted to succeed and freedom was to survive. The fighting men in vietnam are the inheritors of that decision. Accolades in the war are easy to ive. But there is a general agreement that never before in its history had america put into combat, so many men ready to do their job. They are fighting men and not philosophers so they do not talk much about freedom. They know their job and they know about vietnams efforts to uild a nation. We have got to get this war one. If we do not, and will not be a nation to build. John wayne the final outcome of vietnams story will not be determined in the cities or even in the places of open conflict ith the enemy. But out here, in the small clusters of rice farmers and fishermen. That captain over there is peter dawkins. Just a few years ago he was making allamerican at west point. Now he is up to his eyeballs in a really historic adventure. The effort of vietnamese government to create a nation where no real sense of nation has ever existed before. With his help, we hope that we will be able to show you what nationbuilding means. In thousands of hamlets across the country like this. P, you are on. Peter this nationbuilding is an abstract term. So is social revolution, which is the other term the vietnamese use for what they are trying to do. What these terms really boil down to essentially is in effort to bring a better way of life to the millions of vietnamese that live in these villages and hamlets across the country. This is a staggering undertaking but one of vital importance. The president of vietnam has well overdue his claim to a better shape. The government is trying to give a better shake, even while a war is going on. When you look at that fact closely, you discover something truly unique about this war. Improving the lives of these people is not just a humanitarian idea, it is a military necessity. Every american that comes over here, soon becomes aware of his. Tomorrow about midnight, you will surround the village and completely seal it off. If you encounter any vc, you will take your normal combat action. After you seal off this village, it is going to be a little different, however. At first light, we will take the government of vietnam. It is going to be a large group of people going into this village. It is going to be your job to show them that the government of vietnam is the best choice. Your job is just as important in that you have to convince these people that you are soldiers and you are on their side. You are going to gain their confidence by working with them to build a better life. John wayne basic kindness and generosity are not unknown in the american aspect. No one ever expected that they would become military weapons as well. But that is the kind of war this s. John wayne nonmilitary assistance is also a major part of american contribution to vietnams struggle. And has been from the beginning. I am with the United States agency for International Development here in vietnam. I have been here for three years working on the problems. My work has involved almost everything that is nonmilitary, from building schools, dispensaries, roads and bridges. Basically what we have been trying to do is work with the people and help them as much as we can to realize their aims and their wishes. Basically, what we are trying to do is help the government of vietnam respond to these needs and wishes. Helping the government respond to the needs of the people. The u. S. Is not alone either, in the contributions of making. This is one of a number of social centers that is used as chools during today. An iranian Surgical Team provides badly needed Hospital Services in one of the districts. Activity documents the very important fact that 39 nations of the free world today are helping or have promised to help the republic of vietnam in one ay or another. All this is in honestly important and helpful to the ommon cause. But these activities can only be considered as the initial step to help get the process started. No matter how successful our troops or our aid representatives are in winning the support of the people. In the end, that job can only be done by the vietnamese themselves. As good friends and allies we can help strengthen the ties of the people to their government, but only that we can only help. John wayne the vietnamese know this and they are doing omething about it. As a matter of fact, what they are doing constitutes the heart and soul of their efforts for building a nation. This is a training center, a very special training center. It is for the training of what the vietnamese call revolution development. The men who come here, 5000 at a time, 20,000 a year. They hold the hopes for vietnams social revolution in their hands. They learn the skills and techniques of which to translate those principles into effective actions and learn the skills and techniques to transfer those into actions. You may not believe it to look at me, but i am a captain of the United States army. This is the uniform here. I am an advisor here, but only that. You see, the vietnamese are running the show. And it is an arduous one. About half the total training is taken up with military subjects. The job of these men will be to ove into these areas which american troops have subsequently passed through. Their first responsibility will to take off where military left off, and providing security to he area. They are the sons of farmers and fishermen, and have lived all of their lives close to the soil. They do not need much instruction on how to harvest the race crop. Techniques for improving the crops are important part of the curriculum. Someday, they might turn on just such instructions. They become well schooled in the progress of work, probably as much as any spokesman of war. They are built into them constantly. The necessity of reaching the hearts and minds of people that will be working. When theyre training is completed at the end of 13 weeks, they are formed into groups to take the revolution, the social revolution to the countryside. The program in which these groups are involved begins well before they move into a village. First of all, regular forces either ours or South Vietnamese, sweep through the area to clear it. They will chase out any viet cong or enemy unit. Hen regional forces, companies of troops employed within a province, platoons and squads within a district secure the area with their patrols and small sized operations. John wayne then the cadre moves in, dressed in the black pajamas of soldiers. They look at the world as the president sees it, but also as a soldier might. This black pajama uniform is very important. Because it is the traditional garb of the peasant, it is easy for the peasant to identify himself among the group. It complicates hours because the viet cong wears the same uniform. A work with the people to gain their trust. This is made considerably easier by their being assigned to the districts they grew up in, among the people who know them. John wayne they are not left entirely on their own, military units on the periphery. Help deter the enemy from coming back. These men still carry a heavy share of the responsibility for village security. Within the security, the cadre teams begin rolling out the vc infrastructure if one exists. At the same time, the work of he social revolution begins, with a full explanation to the people of exactly what the cadres are in the village for and what they hope to ccomplish. John wayne this is not always an easy step. The overwhelming amount of people are opposed to everything the enemy stands for, but their experience has made them wary. Too often they watch the murder anyone who has cooperated with the government. They have to be persuaded that this will not happen again. It is the job of the cadre to do that persuading, and also to ersuade the villagers that their welfare is of deep concern for the emerging nation. One team starts out right away to find out what the peoples particular problems are. What is needed the most to improve life in the village . Once the problems have been determined, another team starts organizing the efforts to solve hem. This is where the peoples first commitments take hold. What the cadres must do now is encourage and lead the villagers into tackling the projects hemselves. The team will find the necessary materials and supplies to be used, often from u. S. Sources. But the people have to contribute their labor and energy. As their work progresses, the cadres encourage and supervise the election of community leaders. Awakens to a sense of its own importance. It feels the storing of faith in itself. And the government, which is demonstrating its compassion and concern when the people of the community began to take their destiny in their hands, that is the transformation of social revolution. And it is precisely this that the revolutionary development cadres are bringing to the evelopment of vietnam. John wayne they stay in the village for several months, sometimes a year. When their job is through, if they have done it well, they will leave behind a community of people who are able to believe in their future. One of the final missions of the Country Group is to train a selfdefense force from among the ablebodied villagers. A force to protect against the enemy. If they are attacked by the enemy, the commitment is omplete. [singing] john wayne vietnam has a lot riding on these men, we all have. That is right, we all have. John wayne no one can say with absolute certainty that vietnam is going to succeed in building the nation it wants. During the hardships and trials f war. But powerful ideas generate their own growth, even in the most bitter of climates. One of these is the beliefs in individual mans dignity and his right to determine his own course. It is this idea which animates vietnams spirit today. It is an idea that we americans are familiar with. It is to honor our commitment to this idea that we take our stance, and we will hold our stand in this troubled land of a worthy and brave ally. John wayne i would like to leave you with one thought of mine. To understand, to really understand what the vietnamese is trying to do today we can think of our own country less than two centuries ago. We had won our revolution on the battlefield. It took from 1776 to 1787, 11 years for our Founding Fathers to build the substance and structure that is now our great nation. The vietnamese are trying to do both of these things at once. Not because they want to, but be

© 2025 Vimarsana