Title: The Rise of Phoenix Program In Vietnam - The Vietnam War
Headings: The Rise of Phoenix Program In Vietnam
The Rise of Phoenix Program In Vietnam
Support Us Donate
Background
CORDS & Phoenix Rising
Phoenix Program
Provincial Reconnaissance Units
Sharing is Caring
Show us some Love
Also on The Vietnam War
How is the Vietnam War taught in Vietnam?
Was American involvement in the …
Did the U.S lose the Vietnam War?
How did the Vietnam War affect America?
Operation Linebacker II
Vietnamese Re-education Camps
Tribute to All Women Who Served in The …
or sign up with Disqus
or pick a name

Content: After a quick introduction and getting everyone’s attention, they would gather all villagers together for some small entertainment followed by propaganda on South Vietnamese government’s corruption and American atrocity. Finally, they would start to recruit people into their “liberation” committees, guerilla units and so on. These recruited civilians would then form a simple organization comprised of a Communist Party secretary, a supply, finance and social welfare unit called “Viet Cong infrastructure” (VCI) in virtually every village. VCI is the mechanism by which the Viet Cong spread their presence and influence throughout South Vietnam. They were backed by Viet Cong guerillas who could wage terror campaigns against targeted village chiefs and South Vietnamese officials to convince the villagers that support for revolution was the best course. The general civilian population did not necessarily support Viet Cong’s values and ideals, but fear of repercussions by the communist brutal terror if they resisted left them with few options. With the passage of time, a significant number of people would readily join the Viet Cong, whose members were estimated between 70,000 to 100,000 by 1967. CORDS & Phoenix Rising
In 1967, CIA and U.S. Military Assistance Command, Vietnam (MACV) joined hands together in order to keep a check on Viet Cong’s activities in Southern Vietnam. The primary purpose of this collaboration was to increase intelligence on this rising political threat as well as enhance South Vietnamese influence on the countryside. On May 9 1967, Civil Operations and Revolutionary Development Support (CORDS) was created and assumed authority over pacification efforts by the U.S. in South Vietnam.