Causes of the Vietnam war

There are many explanations as to why Australia had participated in a war that was not their own. Australia had become involved in the Vietnam despite the casualties of joining a war, economically and military.

One of the major attributes for Australia’s involvement in the war was the spread of communism. This was acted out through the Domino Theory, whereby if Vietnam were to succumb under the communist rule, then sooner or later it would reach Australia. Australians believed that once Vietnam fell under the communist rule, then so will Cambodia, the Thailand, then Malaysia, then Indonesia until it will eventually reach Australia.

There were also two significant treaties created, the SEATO and the ANZUS Treaty. The South East Asian Treaty Organisation (SEATO) was established specifically for South East countries. This was introduced to put a stop to the oncoming spread of communism. ANZUS (sort for Australia, New Zealand and the United States) was a treaty that united the three countries in the Pacific Ocean region. Australia had realised how vulnerable it was and decided that it was best if there were countries that would come to their assistance since Australia had no borders.

Australia wanted to form an alliance with America, since during that time America had become evolved as one of the strongest nations.  America had become a world leader due to their updated armed sources and strong military. Australia was in need of America due to any future complications whereby they needed assistance. Australia needed strong support, which led Prime Minister Harold Holt to say, “…all the way with LBJ.” This is a well-known quote from Prime Minister Harold Holt, as it proves that Australia was keen to support America in all their decisions, which would guarantee Australia a powerful partner.

Prime Minister Harold Holt

Since the Vietnam War was televised, this caused conscription to be introduced in 1964 by the Liberal party. This was because many people were reluctant to join after seeing the gruesome images. Conscription is basically compulsory military service where your opinion on whether or not you want to join does not matter. Men over the age of 20 were forced to join the army purely based on their birthdates which were randomly selected. This initiated chaos among many civilians, who responded by protesting in numerous ways.

 

Experiences of Allied soldiers in the Vietnam War

 

The allied soldiers who fought in the battle of the Vietnam War were the Americans and Australians. For the Australian military, it was longest period of time that Australia had played a role in the war.

The Allied soldiers came into Vietnam with simple minded thoughts that they were in Vietnam to prevent communism. The Allies simply believed that it was a black and white war, a war between right and wrong. In saying so, they had underestimated the North Vietnamese because they thought the war was going to be a breeze with their advanced technology. But they were wrong, the Tet offensive and North Vietnamese merely used basic tactics, but they were able to beat the Allies.

The Tet Offensive took place on the 30^th of January in 1968. This event was important because the North Vietnamese employed the basic tactic of surprise to simply attack the Allies.  The Allies were greatly surprised because this was a day that the Vietnamese celebrated the traditional Lunar New Year, and thought that no one would attack. This event impacted greatly on the Allies’ self-esteem, and took them a week to grab hold of control in Saigon once again. The My Lai Massacre was an event that demonstrated the Allies as unhuman beings. Instead of protecting their territory, the Allies went on search and destroy missions, killing and murdering all those in their paths.

Also taking into consideration, the hot climate in Vietnam made it difficult for the allies to adapt and it was harder to attack because of the unfavourable heat. The allied soldiers also had to deal with surprise attacks/ booby traps from the Viet Cong from arbitrary locations.

Also taking into consideration, the hot climate in Vietnam made it difficult for the allies to adapt and it was harder to attack because of the unfavourable heat. The allied soldiers also had to deal with surprise attacks/ booby traps from the Viet Cong from arbitrary locations.

Experiences of the South Vietnamese during the Vietnam War

The Vietnam War brought upon South Vietnam much grief. Many had to live in constant fear that today may be their last. Ease and peace in their own home was something that many wished for. The Allies couldn’t distinguish between the Viet Cong, and the citizens of South Vietnam. The Allies were constantly under tension and were suspicious of anyone. This is because many Viet Cong would disguise themselves as ordinary citizens, and would then launch a surprise attack. This My Lai Massacre took the life of many innocent people. The My Lai Massacre was the mass murder between 347 and 504 unarmed civilians in 1968 by the US Army of soldiers. Most of the victims were women, children, infants and elderly people. This led to many instances whereby innocent South Vietnamese people were murdered by the country that was supposed to be helping them. 

Photo taken during the massacre

“Suddenly I had enough. I could not hold myself back any longer. From my weapons stock, I pulled out a hand grenade and took out the pin. All the American and Korean soldiers started screaming and ran out of the bar when I started counting. Four of my own men held me down and then frantically worked to put the pin back in the grenade before the 7 second were up. Otherwise, it would have exploded.”



Military Strategy and Technology during the Vietnam War

There were various different strategies and technology used during the Second World War. The United States used high technology such as helicopters, bombs, motion sensors, tanks and all kinds of artillery. One of the most controversial aspects of U.S military effort in Southeast Asia was the use of chemical defoliants between 1962 and 1971. They were used to defoliate large parts of the land. These chemicals continue to change the landscape, cause diseases and birth defects, and poison in the food chain. The defoliants included the ‘Rainbow Herbicides’- Agent Pink, Agent Green, Agent Purple, Agent Blue, Agent White and most famously Agent Orange.


Agent Orange is the spraying of herbicides and defoliants from the jets fuel. This technique was used by the US military, and contained a toxic substance known as dioxin. The US military used Agent Orange on mostly forest area and rural land to rid the Viet Cong of the cover that was hiding them. Agent Orange is also used as a method to push the Viet Cong towards the cities that have been dominated by the US. The US did this by ridding the Viet Cong of their rural support base and food supply by poisoning the area in which they had resided. Although Agent Orange was only used between 1962 and 1971, the effects of this toxic substance are still evident in Vietnam till this day.

Napalm was one of the strategic weapons they had used. Napalm is a jellied gasoline that sticks on like adhesive. Napalm also burns the object it is stuck upon. Many Vietnamese residents have received third degree burns from the Napalm, which kills the nerves of skin. 

This is a famous photo titled the ‘Napalm Girl’ which is evidence of the tragic effects of  napalm to the Vietnamese people. Kim Phuc is photographed as a child who ran down the streets naked, after being flushed with napalm that burnt through her skin.

The Ho Chi Minh trail was over 1000 miles (1609-3km) long, and was known as the ‘Miracle Road.’ This trail started from North Vietnam, cutting through Laos and Cambodia before entering South Vietnam. This trail enabled war supplies from the North to enter the south, providing the Viet Cong with weapons. The Ho Chi Minh trail consisted of tracks, roads and waterways, which allowed a combination of truck routes and paths for people walking and bicycles. It was on Ho Chi Minh’s birthday, the 9^th of May 1959, whereby this trail was constructed. Despite the American’s advantage concerning their technology and military weapons, this trail was able to maintain its stance and purpose.

There were tunnels underground that were dug by the Viet Cong to be used as hiding places. These were well hid by the Viet Cong, for many could walk above the ground without even knowing it existed. For instance, one part of the tunnel ran underneath US bases. The tunnels contained 3 levels, and were 10 metres deep. They ran for approximately 250 km, and the width of these tunnels was about 53 metres. The tunnels were home to many of the Viet Cong families, for the families practically lived in the tunnels. They were able to dine in the tunnels, have family gatherings, meetings for ambushes, and there were also schools, hospitals and theatres that existed for entertainment. There were little rectangles, around the size of half a brick length wise, that enabled the Viet Cong to quickly kill the US soldiers who walked by. These little slits allowed the Viet Cong to see their enemy, and quickly shoot them without being noticed. They were covered by leaves and bark on the floor.

“No crops existed back when I fought here. It was all bare earth and surrounded by landmines, and we were caught in the middle of a Viet Cong ambush.” Van- He was a young man fighting for the U.S, defending the Viet Cong 
Despite having a high level of advantage due to their technology compared to the North Vietnamese, the US was outsmarted by low tech weapons from the North Vietnamese. An example of the North Vietnamese outsmarting the US was through the different guns they had and the high tech heat sensors. The Americans were equipped with the recent technology, the M16s, while the North Vietnamese were supplied with the AK47s from the USSR. Even though it was recent technology, the AK47s had far better results in the Vietnam War than the M16s, even though the AK47s were produced 20 years ago. Compared to the M16s; the AK47s were more suited towards the jungle, for they were sturdy and easily operated. The high tech heat sensors were implanted in the ground to inform the US soldiers of any Viet Cong who were passing by that area. This was so that the US soldiers could then bomb that area. However, the high tech heat sensors were easily transportable, and the Viet Cong misplaced the sensors to trick the American soldiers.

"I realized how fragile life was. In a mere flicker, you could be gone."

The gun was so easy to use that all who picked it up were able to control it

Reasons for the Allied loss in Vietnam

Even though the Allies came out to be victorious in all the battles that took place in Vietnam, they lost the war overall.  The Allies were able to supply themselves with everything they needed but they had lost what was important in fighting a war. The soldiers lost their morale. Their morale was greatly injured during the Tet offensive,as well as the many other attacks they suffered.  The US entered Vietnam thinking of a black and white war where there was conflict between right and wrng. As the war progressed, it became unclear why they were fighting this war. The soldiers began to doubt if the South Vietnamese even wanted them there in the first place.

The US withdrew from the war and their foreign policy which was to stop the spread of communism, not get rid of it. The fall of Saigon was due to the fact that the South Vietnamese Army were not eager to stand up and fight for their own country, therefore the U.S did not want to fight the war on their own. The use of military firepower killed many South Vietnamese people and pushed away the people they were trying to help.

 Also, the massive protest that many citizens became a part of was a contributor to the Allied loss in Vietnam. The reason that many protests emerged was due to the fact that the Vietnam War was being televised, which meant that the citizens at home were able to bear witness to what it was actually like in Vietnam. They were able to see everything the soldiers did. They saw the falling of comrades, the murders of the innocent South Vietnamese who were slaughtered through the My Lai Massacre; every single detail was broadcasted onto their TV screens. Students, wives, families and ordinary citizens united together to withdraw the soldiers from Vietnam.

Citizens protesting against Conscription

Consequences of the Vietnam War

What was it like in Vietnam after the war?

 

After the war, Vietnam was a country in ruins whereby physical infrastructure on both sides of the North and South and a new communist government was empowered. They sent many people who supported the old government in the South to ‘re-education camps’, and ‘new economic zones’ (displacement). Roughly 1 million people were imprisoned with no formal charges or trials. 165,000 died in the Socialist Republic of Vietnam’s re-education camp and thousands were abused or tortured. It was a very costly war. It did not only affect those in battles but also left behind long term effects on people everywhere in the world. Over 58,000 soldiers died and many more were wounded. The combination of America’s massive military might and the tactics ensured that the civilian population suffered appalling loses. During the war, America dropped 8 million ton of bombs between 1965 and 1973. The use of Agent Orange destroyed 1,034,300 hectares of forest. In the South the largely poor population suffered from military activities of both sides. There was also the real possibility of having to deal with unexploded bombs that had fallen in the working areas but had not exploded. ‘Agent Orange’ left its mark on the environment and had a serious human impact as it caused widespread health problems that persisted for decades.

“War reduces the humanity in us, and it is even worse when you are fighting against your own countrymen because they see things a little differently than you do. Back then I was an angry young man and truly believed that these people I was fighting against were not like me, they were evil.” Van- He was a young man fighting for the U.S, defending the Viet Cong.

This is the result of Viet Cong terrorists exploded a bomb in the garage area underneath the Brinks Hotel in Saigon, South Vietnam.

 

Migration

 

Many South Vietnamese attempted to escape the country. This was all because of the poor living conditions presented in the country. Even if the attempts were not successful, there were still attempts to escape. In today society, the Vietnamese community of many countries such as America and Australians are refugees.

Following the Vietnam War, two million people sought to escape South Vietnam after the communist victory. Often being in small, overcrowded boats they sailed to the South China Sea and other countries. Some made it as far as northern Australia while others spent years in refugee camps before ultimately being admitted to third countries. On the open seas, the boat people had to face storms, diseases, starvation and escaping pirates.

Many Vietnamese people squeezed tightly on a small boat in hope of seeking a better life 

“The Australian Vietnamese Women’s Association gives me help with shopping and home help and they also take me to the temple on the weekend. It wasn’t too difficult to settle in Melbourne because I had a lot of friends.

When I first came to Australia I studied English studying but didn’t use it often, so I can just say things like hello or give greetings. I don’t think I’ve been disadvantaged because of the language. I think I’m doing ok. “-interview with Canh Nguyen by Adrian Lowe