Vietnamese hero compares Iraq with Vietnam
By G. Dunkel
Gen. Vo Nguyen Giap is the last giant of
Vietnam's 35-year-long, and victorious, struggle against
Japanese, French and U.S. imperialism. At 92, he is frail but
still very perceptive and politically acute.
May 7 was the 50th anniversary of the decisive French defeat
at Dien Bien Phu. April 30 saw the anniversary of the fall of
Saigon, now Ho Chi Minh City, which marked the decisive defeat
of U.S. imperialism in Vietnam.
On April 30, General Giap gave a press conference in Hanoi
to mark both anniversaries.
Warning Washington about its adventures in Iraq, Afghanistan
and Haiti, he said, "Any forces that would impose their will on
other nations will certainly face defeat. And all nations
fighting for their legitimate interests and sovereignty will
surely win."
He made it clear that he had no specific information on the
situation in Iraq. But as one of the foremost military leaders
in the world, he has a deep knowledge of the technological
strengths and political weaknesses of imperialism.
Dien Bien Phu, according to Carlyle Thayer, a Vietnam War
expert at the Australian Defense Force Academy, "was a defeat
that reverberated around the world. For Vietnam, it was
electrifying on a global level. This was a major defeat for a
colonial power at the hands of a Third World population."
Giap feels that "Vietnam proves that if a nation is
determined to stand up, it is very strong." He added, "We are
very proud that Vietnam was the first colony that could stand
up and gain independence on its own with the victory of Dien
Bien Phu."
The liberation of Saigon was also a major and decisive
defeat for U.S. imperialism.
General Giap recalled a meeting in 1997 with Robert
McNamara, who was U.S. defense secretary during an early stage
of the U.S. intervention in Vietnam. "I told McNamara ... the
U.S. lost in Vietnam because the U.S. did not understand
Vietnam.
"During the Vietnam War, the Amer ican people supported
Vietnam," he recalled. "I thank the American people for
that."
While Vietnam won great victories against French and U.S.
imperialism, they came at tremendous cost. In the war against
the U.S., Vietnam lost between 3 and 4 million people, compared
to 55,000 for the U.S. side.
But the Vietnamese people triumphed because they were led by
a communist party with deep roots in the people, had a
battle-tested and seasoned leadership with a deep understanding
of the political forces in play, and possessed an unshakable
desire for national sovereignty and independence.
Reprinted from the May 13, 2004, issue of
Workers World newspaper
This article is copyright under a Creative
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