| Abstrakt: |
Vietnam gained independence from France but was divided into a communist-ruled North Vietnam and a republican South Vietnam in 1954. Since that time the United States supported South Vietnam and its Roman Catholic president, Ngo Dinh Diem. By early 1963, Diem faced increasing Communist Party aggression in his country. On May 8, in the South Vietnamese city of Hue, republican forces clashed with Buddhist protesters—six Buddhists and two Catholics were killed. The U.S. government, along with President John F. Kennedy, was displeased with Diem’s stubborn decision to blame the communists—who were likely not involved—for the violence, and by Diem’s ensuing lack of reconciliation with Buddhist protesters. U.S. diplomats feared that Diem was unnecessarily adding new enemies and fueling conflict between his country’s Catholic minority and Buddhist majority. |
