Rallying Potential among the North Vietnamese Armed Forces
Abstract
North Vietnamese Armed Forces (NVA) personnel seldom defect (rally) to the other side. Between 1963 and 1970, fewer than 2000 NVA (hoi Chanh) took advantage of the Allies' Chieu Hoi Open Arms offer. By contrast, about 150,000 Viet Cong (National Liberation Front) defected over the same period. Because the NVA is the more formidable enemy, any increase in its rate of defection is highly desirable; this work attempts to discover flaws in the NVA's armor of high morale that can be exploited to our advantage. To determine the Characteristics that distinguish the NVA defectors from their fellows, 100 NVA defectors were interviewed at the National Chieu Hoi Center in Saigon, and 100 POW forming the control group were interviewed at the Bien Hoa prison camp, 15 Miles outside the Capital. The answers to questions by the POW and hoi chanh are grouped into three categories: areas in which statistical tests showed no difference between defector and POW responses; areas of attitudinal differences between the two groups; and summaries of answers to a series of questions asked only of the hoi chanh.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Dec 01, 1970
- Accession Number
- ADA032197
Entities
People
- Anders Sweetland
Organizations
- RAND Corporation