The South Vietnamese Society by unknow

Author:unknow
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781786255136
Barnesnoble:
Publisher: Normanby Press
Published: 2015-11-06T00:00:00+00:00

The Problem of Ethnic Minorities

The population of South Vietnam consisted roughly of 80 percent ethnic Vietnamese; the remaining was composed mainly of peoples known collectively as ethnic minorities. Excluding a tiny proportion of Indians, Pakistanis, Malays, and Arabs, who lived in the Saigon area and were engaged in commerce and money-lending, the ethnic minorities included the Chams, the Cambodians, the Chinese, and the Montagnards (mountain tribesmen).

Remnants of the Kingdom of Champa, the Chams now numbered about and settled mostly in the Phan Rang area, with a smaller group residing near the Cambodian border in Chau Doc Province. Basically rice farmers, slash-and-burn gardeners, and forest product gatherers, the docile Chams eked out a meager living and never posed any ethnic problem.

The Cambodians, about 400,000 strong, settled in the Mekong Delta, mainly in Vinh Binh, Ba Xuyen, and Chau Doc Provinces. Most were peaceful rice farmers; a few served in the military or civil service. Having long lived mixed with the Vietnamese, these Cambodians were not far removed from the mainstream culture; they all seemed well on their way to being fully integrated into Vietnamese life.

The Chinese formed the largest minority group of all. Their population was estimated at around one million, concentrated mainly in Cho Lon (Saigon’s Chinatown) and other sizable communities in the Mekong Delta provinces of Kien Giang (Rach Gia), Bac Lieu, and Ba Xuyen (Soc Trang). They were engaged in commerce, real estate, banking, rice trade, and rice milling. Because of their industriousness, patience, solidarity, and mutual assistance, they had achieved success in all branches of business, and held a vital role in the economy of South Vietnam (just as they are in the economy of other Southeast Asian countries). The naturalization law promulgated in 1956 by the First Republic, which made it mandatory for all Chinese residents to become Vietnamese citizens, first met with mild opposition but finally proved beneficial to the Chinese. With Vietnamese citizenship they were enjoying greater economic privileges as well as the right to run for office, thus gradually acquiring political representation both on .the local and on the national levels.

Generally speaking, the Chams, Cambodians, and Chinese engaged in no dramatic struggles. The Chams did little else than quietly establishing relations with foreign Muslims. The Cambodians had demonstrated in Saigon a few times demanding rights as a minority group, but their grievances were all met without difficulty. The Chinese seemed seldom to have involved themselves directly in power politics. They were always paying off authorities and accommodating to every government in power to insure freedom for their private enterprise; they only mildly protested when confronted with harsh measures taken by the government. The greatest minority problem for the GVN was the Montagnards.

Well over 30 mountain tribes lived scattered over the Central Highlands, an area half the size of South Vietnam. Numbering about people, they came from different ethnic origins, spoke different languages, and were far less advanced than the Vietnamese. The Montagnard main tribes included the Katu (near the Lao border in MR-1),

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