The North Vietnamese Regime

Book excerpt: The study is intended to give background material on certain problem areas in the existing social system of North Vietnam. Emphasis is placed on the historical development of the North Vietnam Workers' Party (formerly the Indochina Communist Party), its structural organization, tactics employed to seize political power in North Vietnam after the surrender of Japan in August 1945, and the resistance war it waged against France in the period 1946-54. Details are given on the formation of the various front organizations, particularly the Viet Minh and its successor, the Fatherland Front; the youth and women's organizations; and the trade unions; and on the methods employed by the North Vietnamese Communist leadership to mobilize the masses and use them to achieve their political, social, and economic objectives. Included are the discussions of the roles of the puppet Democratic and Socialist parties in furthering the aims of the Communists. Additionally, background information is given dealing with problems affecting the Roman Catholics, ethnic minorities, resettlement of the population, evacuation of urban centers, and the development of local industry. (Author).