A BIT OF CAO DAI HISTORY

UNCLAS HO CHI MINH CITY 000488 SIPDIS STATE FOR EAP/BCLTV AND EAP/PD/JMARTIN UNCLASSIFIED PAGE 02 HO CHI 00488 260658Z STATE ALSO FOR DRL/IRF CINCPAC FOR FPA SECDEF FOR ISA/EA/LSTERN DEPTTREAS FOR AJEWELL USDOC FOR 4431/MAC/AP/OKSA/HPPHO E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PHUM VM HUMANR RELFREE SUBJECT: A BIT OF CAO DAI HISTORY ¶1. POLOFF RECENTLY MET WITH A CAO DAI RELIGIOUS ELDER WHO RELATED AN ANECDOTE REGARDING THE INDOCHINA TALKS HELD IN GENEVA IN 1954. THE SOUTHERN DELEGATION (WHICH INCLUDED ONE CAO DAI REPRESENTATIVE) ATTEMPTED TO MEET PRIVATELY WITH THE VIET MINH DELEGATION HEADED BY PHAM VAN DONG AND PHAN ANH. BUT DONG CALLED THE SOUTHERN DELEGATES PUPPETS OF THE FRENCH, AND THE PROPOSAL NEVER BORE FRUIT. IN AN ATTEMPT TO RESTART THE INITIATIVE, PHAM CONG TAC, CAO DAI POPE AT THE TIME, INVITED DONG AND THE THREE OTHER VIET MINH DELEGATES TO DINNER. THEY REFUSED, BUT OFFERED TO HOST THEIR OWN DINNER FOR PHAM CONG TAC. THE CAO DAI POPE ALSO REFUSED THE DINNER INVITATION, BUT THE CAO DAI AND THE VIET MINH EVENTUALLY DID AGREE AT LEAST TO MEET. ¶2. THE CAO DAI AND VIET MINH HAD BEEN BITTER ENEMIES. VIET MINH FORCES ARE BELIEVED TO HAVE KILLED THOUSANDS OF CAO DAI FOLLOWERS AND DIGNITARIES FROM 1946-48. AT THE BEGINNING OF THEIR MEETING, PHAM CONG TAC REPORTEDLY TOLD PHAM VAN DONG THAT VIETNAM SHOULD FIND ITS OWN IDEOLOGY AND NOT FOLLOW THAT OF CHINA AND THE SOVIET UNION. INDEPENDENCE FROM COLONIALISM WHILE FOLLOWING COMMUNISM, UNCLASSIFIED PAGE 03 HO CHI 00488 260658Z PHAM CONG TAC REPORTEDLY SAID, WOULD BE LIKE A PRISONER BREAKING HIS HANDCUFFS FROM THE WALL ONLY TO ROAM WITHIN HIS PRISON CELL. ¶3. DESPITE THIS ROCKY START, THE ATMOSPHERE DURING THE MEETING IMPROVED. AFTERWARDS THE CAO DAI AND VIET MINH SHARED A VEGETARIAN MEAL TOGETHER. PHAM VAN DONG PROMISED TO MAKE A VISIT TO THE CAO DAI TEMPLE IN TAY NINH. (REMINDED OF THIS PROMISE IN 1991, DONG REPORTEDLY SAID THAT FOR POLITICAL REASONS, THE TIME WAS NOT YET RIGHT. HE NEVER MADE THE TRIP.) ¶4. AT THE NEXT FORMAL SESSION IN GENEVA, WHEN THE VIET MINH DELEGATION WALKED INTO THE ROOM, THE CAO DAI REPRESENTATIVE FROM THE SOUTHERN DELEGATION (WHO HAD BEEN AT THE PHAM CONG TAC/PHAM VAN DONG MEETING) STOOD UP AND BOWED TO PHAM VAN DONG. DONG IN TURN BOWED TO THE CAO DAI REPRESENTATIVE. THE SOUTHERN DELEGATION TOOK THIS AS A BOW TO THEM ALL COLLECTIVELY, AND THEY IN TURN STOOD UP AND BOWED TO THE VIET MINH DELEGATION, WHO IN TURN THEN RETURNED THE COMPLIMENT. ACCORDING TO THE CAO DAI RELIGIOUS ELDER WHO RELATED THE STORY, THE FRENCH DELEGATION LOOKED ON IN AMAZEMENT AT THIS BOWING BETWEEN THE TWO SIDES WHO HAD PREVIOUSLY REFUSED TO TALK TO EACH OTHER AT THE FORMAL ROUNDS. THE GENEVA TALKS ENDED WITH "ACCORDS" THAT PARTITIONED THE COUNTRY, AND CALLED FOR A CEASE-FIRE AND ELECTIONS. THE REST, AS WE KNOW, IS HISTORY. RAY UNCLASSIFIED PAGE 04 HO CHI 00488 260658Z UNCLASSIFIED