Reeducation in Postwar Vietnam: Personal Postscripts to Peace (Volume 75) (Williams-Ford Texas A&M University Military History Series)

When helicopters plucked the last Americans off the roof of the U.S. Embassy in Saigon in 1975, countless Vietnamese who had worked with or for the Americans remained behind. Many of these were soon arrested and sent to "reeducation" camps where they faced forced labor, indoctrination sessions, and privation. Others suffered through harrowing flights from their homes seeking safe haven across treacherous seas. The stories of three of these Vietnamese who survived and eventually found their way to America are told here in stark and moving detail. For a decade before the fall of Saigon, Edward P. Metzner served as an advisor among the people of the beautiful and hotly contested Mekong Delta. After the war, he diligently sought news of the close friends and comrades in arms he had made among the Vietnamese military officers. Many had died; others could not be found. When Metzner eventually located a few, he believed their stories should be told. Three agreed to do so, and their accounts form the core of __Reeducation in Postwar__ __Vietnam____: Personal Postscripts to Peace.__ Two of the men, Huynh Van Chinh and Tran Van Phuc, who had been colonels of the Army of Vietnam, lived through the deprivation, torture, and mental abuse of the reeducation camps and eventually found freedom in America. The experiences of these two men reveal not only the closely guarded secrets of the experiences of high-ranking officers in post-war Vietnam but also the changes in the camps over time. In the book's other first-person account, Col. Le Nguyen Binh tells a different story: his dangerous escape from Vietnam, with some of his junior officers and enlisted men, in three overloaded fishing boats with low stocks of drinking water and food and recalcitrant crews. Metzner introduces the book and the individual stories with the details necessary to understand the larger picture of which they are a part. He also profiles Gen. Le Minh Dao, a division commander in the dangerous area northwest of Saigon who spent seventeen years in North Vietnamese jails, and Father Joe Devlin, a Catholic priest who aided innumerable people in Vietnam through the years of the war and in Malaysian refugee camps afterward. The matter-of-fact, even stoic stories of these survivors stand as a testimony to their endurance and persistent desire to return to a life in freedom. When helicopters plucked the last Americans off the roof of the U.S. Embassy in Saigon in 1975, countless Vietnamese who had worked for the Americans remained behind. Many were arrested and sent to "reeducation" camps, where they faced forced labor, indoctrination sessions, and severe privation.For a decade before the fall of Saigon, Edward P. Metzner served as an advisor among the people of the beautiful and hotly contested Mekong Delta. After the war, he diligently sought news of the close friends and comrades he had made among the Vietnamese military officers. Many had died; others could not be found. When Metzner eventually located a few, he believed their stories should be told. Three agreed to do so, and their accounts form the core of Reeducation in Postwar Vietnam.Huynh Van Chinh and Tran Van Phuc, who had been colonels in the Army of Vietnam, lived through the deprivation and torture of the camps and eventually found freedom in America. Le Nguyen Binh tells a different story: that of his dangerous escape from Vietnam, with some of his junior officers and enlisted men, in three overloaded fishing boats.The matter-of-fact, even stoic stories of these survivors stand as a testimony to their endurance and persistent desire to return to a life of freedom. When Helicopters Plucked The Last Americans Off The Roof Of The U.s. Embassy In Saigon In 1975, Countless Vietnamese Who Had Worked With Or For The Americans Remained Behind. Many Of These Were Soon Arrested And Sent To Reeducation Camps Where They Faced Forced Labor, Indoctrination Sessions, And Privation. Others Suffered Through Harrowing Flights From Their Homes Seeking Safe Haven Across Treacherous Seas. The Stories Of Three Of These Vietnamese Who Survived And Eventually Found Their Way To America Are Told Here In Stark And Moving Detail.--jacket. Pt. I. Col. Tran Van Phuc's Story -- Pt. Ii. Col. Huynh Van Chinh's Story -- Pt. Iii. Col. Le Nguyen Binh's Story -- Pt. Iv. One A Hero, One A Saint. Edward P. Metzner ... [et Al.]. Includes Index. Contents 8 Illustrations 10 Preface 12 Acknowledgments 18 Chapter 1 22 Chapter 2 24 Chapter 3 29 Chapter 4 35 Chapter 5 47 Chapter 6 49 Chapter 7 53 Chapter 8 58 Chapter 9 62 Chapter 10 64 Chapter 11 80 Chapter 12 92 Chapter 13 98 Chapter 14 112 Chapter 15 117 Chapter 16 128 Chapter 17 131 Chapter 18 134 Chapter 19 137 Chapter 20 139 Chapter 21 141 Chapter 22 144 Chapter 23 148 Epilogue 156 Index 158