Our Mandarin in Vietnam’s Self-Inflicted Problems
South Vietnam’s President Ngo Dinh Diem (1901 – 1963) came to power in 1955. With a heavily rigged referendum, he deposed Vietnam’s Emperor Bao Dai, and established the Republic of Vietnam with himself as president. A staunch Catholic, he pursued discriminatory policies that favored Catholics for public service and military positions. Catholics were favored when it came to land distribution, tax concessions, and business arrangements. Some Catholic priests even ran private armed militias, which they used to demolish Buddhist pagodas and force people to convert to Catholicism. Diem’s government turned a blind eye to such activities.
Catholics were a distinct minority, and about 90% of South Vietnamese were Buddhists. Diem’s pro-Catholic tilt thus infuriated most of his countrymen. By 1963, South Vietnam seethed with discontent, while an insurgency steadily intensified, fueled by widespread governmental corruption, nepotism, and the president’s pro-Catholic policies. Protests erupted in May, when Diem banned the flying of Buddhist flags. That was only days after he had encouraged Catholics to fly Vatican flags at a celebration of Diem’s elder brother, a Catholic archbishop. Government troops opened fire on Buddhist protesters, killed and wounded dozens, which triggered yet more protests.