COSVN Party Current Affairs Committee Provides Guidance for the Political Struggle in the Cities of South Vietnam for the Final Days of 1974

On the occasion of a number of different anniversaries in the urban population’s struggle against foreign aggression, the COSVN Party Current Affairs Committee sent a cable to a number of localities, including Region 5 and Tri Thien, on stepping up the political struggle movement in South Vietnam’s cities. The cable said:

“-First, reveal to the people of the recalcitrant, deceitful schemes of the Thieu government; incite a mass movement demanding better living conditions and democracy using the current slogans; strive to win the support of the different religions and religious factions; encourage and push actions by the third force; and work to deepen and exacerbate divisions within the enemy’s ranks in order to continue to strengthen the forces opposed to Thieu. We must make the masses clearly understand the strength of unified struggle by all classes of our population and how this strength can help to topple American-puppet dictatorial, military, war-mongering governments.

“-Second, make every possible effort to stimulate the positive, revolutionary nature of the anti-Thieu Buddhist movement. We must find ways to insert our people into the Buddhist leadership councils. We must encourage and persuade good, progressive individuals to attend Buddhist congresses and encourage province and district Buddhist congregations to hold their own local congresses and to send representatives to attend national-level [Buddhist] congresses. We must prepare demands and prepare statements on the aspirations of the great masses of the Buddhists. We need to use overt methods to organize and bring together large numbers of the masses.

“-With regard to the struggle being waged by our Catholic compatriots who are opposed to Thieu, we need to encourage, support, and mobilize the masses to participate in the struggle demanding national reconciliation and concord and demanding that Catholicism be modernized for the sake of peace. At the same time we need to organize and mobilize the Catholics and the Buddhists to unite in the struggle to demand better living conditions, democracy, Thieu’s resignation, and the formation of a government that will implement the Paris Agreement.”

Source: Document held in the Archives of the Party Central Committee

P42 - DVBQ 0377