UCLA Asia Institute
Today in Asian History
March 2
1946 Ho Chi Minh (1890-1969) was elected president
of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam. Later that year Ho travelled to France to the
independence of all Vietnam, including the southern provinces France was determined to
hold on to. Near the end of 1946, Ho's government was driven from Hanoi by French forces. Born Nguyen Sinh Cung, Ho devoted his life to fighting foreign domination
of Vietnam. He participated in the founding of the French Communist Party in 1920 and
established the Vietnam Revolutionary Youth League in Guangzhou (Canton), China in 1925.
In 1930, the league merged with two other communist groups to became the Vietnamese
Communist Party. During World War II, the U.S. Office of Strategic Services (precursor to
the Central Intelligence Agency) supported Ho's guerrilla attacks against the Japanese.
After the defeat of the Japanese, however, the U.S. preoccupation with opposing communism
meant that it would support the French as they fought to retain control of Vietnam. When
the French were defeated in 1954 and the U.S. backed an opposing regime, the former allies
became enemies leading to U.S. involvement in another of Vietnam's wars. Ho was confident
of the eventual triumph of his movement: "In a war, it is natural that there are losses and sacrifices. Our people
are determined to fight on. We will endure all sacrifice for ten years, 20 years or
longer, until complete victory." The Destination: Vietnam website features a photo essay by Michael McKittrick on Ho
Chi Minh images in present-day Vietnam. The U.S. Library of Congress's Vietnam: A Country Study includes photos of Ho Chi Minh. 1962 Burmese General Ne Win (b. 1911) led a
military coup replacing premier U Nu's elected government. Ne Win dominated the military
government and its quasi-civilian successor for three and one-half decades, only yielding
the presidency in 1982 and his party chairmanship in 1988. The AI "Today in Asian History" page was compiled by Clayton Dube.
He welcomes your comments and suggestions. Send them to <cdube@isop.ucla.edu>. Copyright 1998-2001 by the UCLA Center for East
Asian Studies.
Search
the Asia Institute website (including the Today in Asian History pages).
