University of Virginia Library

Thieu Opposition Attacked

were boys ranging in age from 13 to
16, some of whom giggled with
embarrassment when they were
called on to raise their arm and
shout agreement to the resolutions
read from the platform. Most of
them neither shouted nor raised
their arms.

Deputy Due and Tim Sang have
been the target of a series of
terrorist acts since last September,
when Due delivered a strong attack
on U.S. "neocolonialism" in Viet
Nam and the Thieu regime at a
news conference in Paris. After a
number of government-sponsored
rallies in various provinces
denounced him as a
pro-Communist, his home was
firebombed last October. Tim Sang's office was firebombed twice in one
week in December. None of the
incidents caused damage.

Tin Sang is generally conceded
to be the most widely read
newspaper in Saigon, and its
anti-war columns and editorials
have resulted in the highest rate of
confiscation of any Saigon paper
about one in every three issues.

Due, a 36-year-old Southern
Catholic, believes the government is
trying to close down his paper,
through various pressures, before
the election. In a recent interview,
he predicted that he would suffer
"further harassment, not only
regarding confiscation but regarding
personal security."

The terrorist incident at Tin
Sang's office came less than two
weeks after sources close to
President Thieu let it be known
that the government intended to
crack down on groups who opposed
the military operation in Laos.

An authoritative front-page
story in the pro-government
newspaper Chiah Luan on March
18, quoted "sources close to
Independence Palace" as saying
that Thieu had decided to use
"strong methods" to deal with
anti-war movements who were
"making trouble in the rear while
the soldiers are operating in Laos
and Cambodia."

The article gave the impression
that leading officers of the
Vietnamese General Staff were
putting heavy pressure on Thieu to
move against anti-war groups and
individuals. These officers, it said,
found it "extremely difficult to
take being criticized and often
reviled by the pseudo-pacifist
opposition."