US embassy cable - 05HOCHIMINHCITY451

UNCLAS HO CHI MINH CITY 000451 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR EAP/BCLTV, DRL/IRF 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL, PGOV, PINR, SOCI, VM 
SUBJECT: HCMC CELEBRATES THE 30TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE END OF THE 
WAR 
 
 
1. (U) Ho Chi Minh City threw an elaborate celebration to mark the 
30th anniversary of the end of the war and the reunification of 
the country.  The cornerstone of the April 30th event was a three- 
hour parade followed by speeches from Communist Party national and 
city leaders.  In the reviewing stand was a virtual who's who of 
the Communist Party of Vietnam:  General Secretary Nong Duc Manh, 
former General Secretary Le Kha Phieu, President Tran Duc Luong, 
former President Le Duc Anh, Prime Minister Phan Van Khai, retired 
General Vo Nguyen Giap, Speaker of Parliament Nguyen Van An and 
former Prime Minister Vo Van Kiet.  Cuban Defense Minister Raul 
Castro was among the handful of senior foreign dignitaries to 
attend.  There was no anti-U.S. animus evident at the parade. 
 
2. (SBU) In their keynote speeches, President Luong and HCMC Party 
Secretary Nguyen Minh Triet broke little new ground.  They focused 
 
SIPDIS 
on the central role of HCMC in Vietnam's economy and lauded the 
role of the Party in guiding the city's transformation into a 
"modern socialist city."  Both emphasized the need for HCMC and 
Vietnam to overcome "shortcomings" and to take the "necessary 
steps to sustain economic development."   Although the speeches 
focused on national reconciliation, Luong and Triet still used 
phrases such as "servant government" to characterize the Republic 
of South Vietnam.  A public concert the previous evening portrayed 
the Viet Cong and Vietnamese villagers suffering under B-52 carpet 
bombing and Agent Orange defoliant spraying in the South during 
the war, but the tens of thousands of spectators -- the vast 
majority born after the war ended -- were far more interested in 
the dancing, singing and fireworks that followed the war-time 
retrospective.  True to HCMC's spirit, by Sunday, many of the 
decorations had been removed and it was back to business as usual. 
 
3. (SBU) There was a staged, potemkinesque feel to the entire 
official event.  For the parade, the police closed downtown HCMC 
and even local Vietnamese residents were "encouraged" to stay at 
home.  The marchers paraded through empty streets, although 
Vietnamese television made sure the parade looked good. 
Similarly, HCMC police went door-to-door in many neighborhoods to 
ensure that storeowners and residents displayed Vietnamese flags. 
If not, the police sold and mounted the flags at a nominal cost. 
 
4. (SBU) We understand that there was friction behind the scenes 
over the content of the speeches given at the event.  A reliable 
contact close to former PM Kiet told us that HCMC Party Secretary 
Triet had asked Kiet to comment on a draft of his speech.  Kiet 
reportedly told Triet that he found his speech bland and 
disappointing.  He urged the HCMC Party Leader -- and Politburo 
member -- to use the event to challenge hardliners and to make a 
bold call for internal party reform and faster international 
integration.  Triet demurred, according to our contact. 
 
WINNICK