In April of 1975, the southern capital at Saigon fell to the communists' troops. communist rebel organization against Republic of Vietnam(South Vietnam) and the United States of America, In October 1961, there were 150 NLF bombings and attacks, triple the number of the previous month. Store and/or access information on a device. Sometimes as Chuck. In it he called for communists to rise up and gather support, overthrow South Vietnam’s leader Ngo Dinh Diem and expel foreign advisors and businessmen. The NLF’s bombings, sabotage and assassinations also generated considerable opposition. “The reasons a man or woman joined the VC are as varied and complex as individuals themselves. On the ground, the NLF adopted its own “shadow government”, which operated across 20 regions and was commanded by a party official. Who Were the Viet Cong and How Did They Affect the War? Using guerrilla methods they targeted foreign and government personnel, buildings and facilities. The most common was simply disillusionment with the government in Saigon, and acceptance of the constant barrage of NLF propaganda. The insurgents also carried out bombings of hotels and cafes in Saigon and other cities. The phrase "Viet Cong" denotes only southerners who supported the communist cause — but in many cases, they were integrated with fighters from the regular North Vietnamese army, the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN). A Viet Cong is a man, woman or child – a tough fighter, with words or weapons, … US Defence pamphlet: Know Your Enemy: the Viet Cong (1966) The Politburo considered North Vietnam’s domestic policies, such as economic and military reform, to be more pressing. The Vietcong was aided and supplied by communist North Vietnam and its leader Ho Chi Minh. Whatever the reasons, by 1959 there were as many as 20 different communist cells scattered around South Vietnam. They took rice from villagers at gunpoint, carried out incredible numbers of targeted assassinations against people who supported the South Vietnamese government, and perpetrated the Hue Massacre during the Tet Offensive, in which anywhere from 3,000 to 6,000 civilians and prisoners of war were summarily executed. The Viet Cong was formed in 1954 and lasted until 1976, when it was disbanded. In Call of Duty: Black Ops, the Viet Cong are seen in three levels: "Victor Charlie", "Crash Site", and "Payback". Continue Reading Below. Then there was always Victor, Chuck, Victor Chuck. Others claim they did so under orders from Hanoi, which wanted to disrupt the development of the South and prepare for a future war. Nevertheless, the Politburo authorised communist insurgents in the South to begin a limited campaign of violence. Under international pressure to rein in this violence, the North Vietnamese government continually stressed that southern communists were acting independently, not under instruction from Hanoi. The Viet Cong began as a collection of various factions who opposed the government of President Ngo Dinh Diem. I was in a MIKE Force, Special Forces. This escalation prompted US president John F. Kennedy to increase the number of American military advisors in South Vietnam, with several thousand arriving over the next six months. It contains 185,184 words in 262 pages and was updated last on May 10th 2021. In 1956, Le Duan developed a plan titled the ‘Road to the South’. At the height of the Vietnam War, if you had asked an American who their country was fighting in Vietnam, most would have answered the Viet Cong. https://www.thoughtco.com/the-viet-cong-the-vietnam-war-195432 (accessed May 15, 2021). They were intended to cow the populace, liquidate opponents, erode the morale of South Vietnamese government employees, and boost tax collection and propaganda efforts. 4. Established at the end of 1960, the VC was created by the North Vietnamese communists to escalate the armed struggle in South Vietnam. The NLF also adopted its own anthem called Giai Phong Mien Nam (Liberate the South): “To liberate the South we decided to advance. South Vietnamese and Westerners knew it as the Viet Cong. Many southerners joined the Viet Cong and fought against both the government of South Vietnam and the armed forces of the United States between 1959 and 1975. The attitude of most American soldiers towards the Viet Cong evolved into a combination of hatred, fear and begrudging admiration. Viet Cong bombings and operations increased from late 1961. "Who Were the Viet Cong and How Did They Affect the War?" From here, “Viet Cong” was commonly further shortened to “VC”, which in the NATO phonetic alphabet is pronounced “Victor-Charlie”, which gave rise to the further shortened, “Charlie” designation. [Stanley Kubrick Full Metal Jacket (1987), adapted from The Short Timers by Gustav Hasford]. Murder, kidnapping, torture and intimidation were a routine part of Viet Cong (VC) and People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) operations during the Vietnam War. They are commonly seen wearing green pith helmets with leaves for camouflage and head protection, or bandannas, flannel work outfits, or they are shirtless leaving them susceptible to chest shots, and wear … Membership of the NLF grew rapidly, filled both by southern sympathisers and thousands of communists who streamed down from the North. List of Partners (vendors). For more information on usage, please refer to our Terms of Use. In most parts of South Vietnam, the NLF remained an underground organisation; its movements and activities were often described as “ghostly”. Vietnam War memory quiz – events 1946-1964, Vietnam War memory quiz – events 1965-1975, Vietnam War memory quiz – terms and concepts (I), Vietnam War memory quiz – terms and concepts (II), The program of the National Liberation Front or Viet Cong (1962), A CIA report on Viet Cong weaknesses and vulnerabilities (1965), A Viet Cong guerrilla on the Tet Offensive (1968), A Viet Cong soldier on their approach to tactics and warfare (1985). Support did not only flow one way, however. Within each region, there were several districts and villages, overseen by one or more NLF cadres. We Were the Biggest Threat to Our Own Safety. Its cadres circulated these ideas by organising political education forums, youth groups and women’s groups. Often the only contact villagers had with the government was through heavy-handed tax collectors and ARVN soldiers. This time, it would be the National Liberation Front, nicknamed the Viet Cong or "Vietnamese Commies" by anti-communist Vietnamese in the south. American military personnel in Vietnam knew the Viet Cong as “VC”, “Victor Charlie”, “Charlie” or “Chuck”. Presidium members held their meetings in remote locations, rarely meeting in the same place twice. The revolutionary movement in South Vietnam was formalised on December 20th 1960, with the formation of Mat Tran Dan Toc Giai Phong Mien Nam (the National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam). Buddhist monks, former members of religious sects like the Cao Dai and Hoa Hao, displaced peasants and urban workers could be found in NLF ranks. We will attack the 506th D2 Battalion and the 2nd Independent Brigade. On a day … 2. 3. Cadres also informed people about the crimes and exploitations of South Vietnamese leader Ngo Dinh Diem and his followers. ThoughtCo, Aug. 25, 2020, thoughtco.com/the-viet-cong-the-vietnam-war-195432. There was also no official NLF headquarters or even a particular area where NLF officials could be found. The Viet Cong were supported and trained by the government of communist North Vietnam. Viet Cong soldiers were trained to be subversive, evasive and crafty. Citation information See more. Szczepanski, Kallie. Another important task carried out by Viet Cong was to ferry supplies to their comrades from the north to the south along the Ho Chi Minh Trail, which ran through adjacent parts of Laos and Cambodia. The Viet Cong were cursed and condemned for not following the Western conventions of war. The Viet Cong were South Vietnamese supporters of the communist National Liberation Front in South Vietnam during the Vietnam War (known in Vietnam as the American War). They do not have formal military uniforms because they are guerrilla fighters. It would be better, they said, to wait three years for attempting to facilitate a revolution in South Vietnam. The Tet Offensive 1968. Date accessed: May 16, 2021 The seeds of the NLF were several thousand communists who defied the terms of the Geneva Accord (1954) and remained underground in South Vietnam. By 1961, the NLF’s internal organisation had evolved further and resembled the structure of the Lao Dong. The Viet Cong were featured and demonised in the American press. For more information, please visit our FAQ or Terms of Use. This began in mid-1957 with a few units carrying out acts of terrorism against foreigners, foreign sympathisers and government targets. Oh bones have broken and blood has fallen, the hatred is rising high. This means that the VC killed somewhere between 200,000 and 600,000 civilians. After the American military escalation in 1965, eradication of the Viet Cong became the number one objective for the US military. The NLF and Viet Cong were shadowy organisations that blended into rural life but remained politically and militarily active, recruiting and disseminating propaganda. 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