Revolutionary Military Council

Ngô Đình Diệm's removal and assassination set off a period of political instability and declining legitimacy of the Military Government of the Republic of Vietnam (Vietnamese: Chánh-phủ Quân-phiệt Việt-nam Cộng-hòa^{[note 1]}, Chinese: 越南共和國軍閥政府).

Immediately after the 1963 coup d'etat broke out on November 1, 1963 and the coup d'etat troops captured the radio station, the group of generals leading the coup announced the establishment of the Revolutionary Military Council (Vietnamese: Hội-đồng Quân-nhân Cách-mạng, Chinese: 革命軍人委員會) with 20 members. General Dương Văn Minh became president, but he was ousted in January 1964 by General Nguyễn Khánh. Phan Khắc Sửu was named head of state, but power remained with a junta of generals led by Khánh, which soon fell to infighting.

High National Council

At Gia Long Palace after the turn-over ceremony (between Air Vice Marshal Nguyen Cao Ky and the out-going Prime Minister) June 21, 1965. Left: Prime Minister Nguyễn Cao Kỳ. Middle: Ex. Prime Minister Phan Huy Quát. Right: Ex. Chief of State Phan Khắc Sửu.

Phan Khắc Sửu was elected by the executive committee of the Revolutionary Military Council from the High National Council (Vietnamese: Thượng Hội-đồng Quốc-gia, Chinese: 越南共和國國家高級委員會) as its chairman on 27 September 1964, and was nominated as Head of State of South Vietnam on 24 October 1964. The Vice-Chairman was Nguyễn Xuân Chữ, and the General Secretary was Trần Văn Văn.^[1] Dr Hồ Văn Nhựt was nominated for the role of Prime Minister of South Vietnam as he had the support from all religious and political parties. It was the first time since the First Republic that this position, of greater power than Head of State, was handed over to a civilian.

However, Dr Nhựt wanted a solution for national reconciliation and, after unsatisfactory negotiations with the MRC and American authorities, he declined the offer. Trần Văn Hương, prefect of Saigon, was subsequently appointed Prime Minister. His civilian government was short-lived as it was opposed by Buddhist Uprising and military revolt, resulting in the military reassuming control of the government and dissolving the Council.^[2][3][4] Thereafter, South Vietnam went through a period of political instability until the Nguyễn Văn Thiệu/Nguyễn Cao Kỳ junta took power in mid-1965.

On September 20, 1964, there was an outbreak of violence by American-trained CIDG troops in the Special Forces bases of Buon Sar Pa and Bu Prang in Quảng Đức Province (now Đắk Nông Province) and in Buon Mi Ga, Buon Don and Buon Brieng in Đắk Lắk Province. Several Vietnamese soldiers were killed and the Americans disarmed, and FULRO activists from the Buon Sar Pa base seized the radio station on Route 14 on the south-west outskirts of Buôn Ma Thuột, from which they broadcast calls for independence.

Outsiders advising and assisting the dissident Montagnards were Y Dhon Adrong, two officers of the Royal Khmer Army, Lieutenant Colonel Y Bun Sur, a member of the M'Nong tribe and Province Chief of Cambodia's Mondulkiri Province, Les Kosem, and Chau Dara.^[5]

During the morning of September 21, Y Bham Enuol was quickly abducted from his residence in Buôn Ma Thuột by elements from the Buon Sar Pa group and communiques were issued in his name.^[5] Several weeks later, Y Bham's family were quietly taken from his village, Buon Ea Bong, three kilometres northwest of Buôn Ma Thuột, and escorted into the FULRO base in Cambodia's Mondulkiri Province.^[5]

On the evening of September 21, 1964, Brigadier General Nguyễn Hữu Có, the commander of Military Region II, who had flown down to Buôn Ma Thuột from his headquarters in Pleiku, met with several rebel leaders from Buon Enao, during which he assured them of his partial support of some of their demands in representations to Prime Minister General Nguyễn Khánh and the Saigon government. Following progress in their negotiations, General Co requested that the rebel leaders brief the other dissident elements and ask them to peacefully return to their bases and await the outcome of the negotiations. The leaders who had met with General Cơ the previous night were prevented from briefing the Buon Sar Pa group which, still disgruntled, returned to their Buon Sar Pa Special Forces base, accompanied by Colonel John F. Freund, the US Army advisor to General Cơ. Colonel Freund's decision to accompany the still dissident Buon Sar Pa group was not authorised by General Cơ.^[5]

The Buon Sar Pa group continued to defy the Vietnamese authorities and most of the CIDG force deserted their Buon Sar Pa base and moved, with their weapons and equipment, across the international border and into Cambodia's Mondulkiri Province. Those CIDG troops remaining in the Buon Sar Pa base were threatened by General Cơ with a sharp military response and Freund, who had stayed with them, persuaded them to officially surrender to Prime Minister General Nguyễn Khánh. An official surrender ceremony took place in the mostly deserted Buon Sar Pa base; however this resulted in a loss of face for those dissident Montagnards who had agreed to stand down and await the promises made by General Co during negotiations with their leaders on the night of September 21, 1964.^[5]

During the weeks that followed, the Buon Sar Pa CIDG deserters in their base in Mondulkiri Province were reinforced by a large number of deserters from the other CIDG Special Forces bases.^[6] Y Bham was named head of FULRO, given the rank of General and named President of the High Plateau of Champa, a sign of the influence on the dissidents by the Cham advisers, Lieutenant Colonel Les Kosem and Chau Dara.^[5] A Cham goddess's name was used as a call sign by Les Kosem.^[7]

Cambodia was suspected of support for the rebellion.^[8] At the time of the revolt, Y Bun Sur and Les Kosem were senior officers serving in the Royal Khmer Army and both were also agents of Cambodia's 12th Bureau, the country's secret intelligence service. As well, Y Bun Sur was still the Province Chief of Mondulkiri Province. This indicates the likely involvement of the government of Prince Sihanouk. Y Bun Sur was also an agent in France's secret intelligence service at that time, the Service de Documentation Extérieure et de Contre-Espionnage (SDECE). This indicates possible involvement of the French in the revolt.

The Americans were unsure who was ultimately responsible for the CIDG rebellion and initially blamed the Viet Cong and French. However, the 'neutralist' Cambodian regime of Sihanouk had probably the greatest hand in events: the 20 September 1964 'Declaration' by the Haut Comité of FULRO contained anti-SEATO rhetoric that bore a strong resemblance to that issued by Sihanouk's regime in the same period Meanwhile, Sihanouk hosted a conference, the "Indochinese People's Conference", in Phnom Penh in early 1965, at which Enuol headed a FULRO delegation.

Y Bham brought FULRO to the fore in 1965 when FULRO published anti-South Vietnamese propaganda against CIDG troops that attacked the Saigon regime and applauded Cambodia for its support.

Adjacent to Vietnam, the Cambodian forests were a base by FULRO fighters battling the Democratic Republic of Vietnam. Lack of progress in gaining concessions led to another FULRO uprising by its more militant faction in December 1965, in which 35 Vietnamese (including civilians) were killed. This event was rapidly suppressed, and four captured FULRO commanders (Nay Re, Ksor Bleo, R'Com Re and Ksor Boh) were publicly executed.

An FULRO declaration in 1965 announced to the United Nations and the Member States of the Committee of Decolonization that they would be fighting against both South Vietnam and the US to achieve independence. Initial media and sources from Saigon dismissively downplayed the FULRO threats, suggesting that the uprising was held by a small group of "illiterate" highlanders. When the Khánh regime collapsed in June 1965, the administration under new Prime Minister of South Vietnam Nguyễn Cao Kỳ terminated the state's discriminatory development programs to appease the tensions with the indigenous peoples.^[9]

National Leadership Committee

The National Leadership Committee of the Republic of Vietnam (Vietnamese: Ủy-ban Lãnh-đạo Quốc-gia Việt-nam Cộng-hòa, Chinese: 越南共和國國家領導委員會) was an organization created by the Armed Forces Council (Vietnamese: Hội-đồng Quân-lực, Chinese: 軍力委員會) on June 12, 1965 to lead the country when the civilian government of Prime Minister Phan Huy Quát was paralyzed and then dissolved.

At the same time, the National Leadership Committee issued decree 001/a/CT/LDQG to govern the government through the Central Executive Committee (Vietnamese: Ủy-ban Hành-pháp Trung-ương, Chinese: 中央行政委員會). This Committee operated from June 1965 to November 1967, when it ended, giving way to the civilian government of the Second Republic. This is also the last organization of the period of Military Government (1963-1967) before the establishment of the Second Republic of Vietnam.

The handing over of a message of Pupe Paul VI by Archbishop Sergio Pignedoli to the Viet Nam's Inter-Faith Council representative Ven. Thich Minh Truc supreme head of the Buddhist General Church.

On June 2, 1967, Y Bham Enuol sent a delegation to Buôn Ma Thuột to petition the South Vietnamese government. On June 25 and 26, 1967, a congress of ethnic minorities throughout South Vietnam was convened to finalise a joint petition, and on August 29, 1967, a meeting was held under the direction of Nguyễn Văn Thiệu, President of the National Leadership Committee and Major General Nguyễn Cao Kỳ, President of the Central Executive Committee.

The South Vietnamese government sent a diplomatic contingent to Buôn Mê Thuột in August 1968 to negotiate with FULRO representatives, including Y Bham, after a promise of safe conduct was given to him by Prime Minister Trần Văn Hương. FULRO's grievances against South Vietnam were no longer the top priority for Cambodia at this point, however, because the Khmer Rouge was starting to distract Sihanouk in 1968.^[10]

By December 11, 1968, negotiations between FULRO and the Vietnamese authorities had resulted in an agreement to recognise minority rights, establish a Ministry to support these rights, and to allow Y Bham Enuol to remain permanently in Vietnam. However, some elements of FULRO, notably FLC head Les Kosem, opposed the deal with the Vietnamese. On December 30, 1968, Kosem, at the head of several battalions of the Royal Cambodian Army, and accompanied by a group from the militant FULRO wing responsible for the 1965 fighting, surrounded and took Camp le Rolland. Enuol was placed under effective house arrest in Phnom Penh at the residence of Colonel Um Savuth of the Cambodian army, where he was to remain for the next six years.

On February 1, 1969, a final treaty was signed between Paul Nur, representing South Vietnam, and Y Dhon Adrong. These events signified the end of FULRO as a 'political' movement, especially as its previous backer, the Sangkum regime of Sihanouk, was to fall to the Cambodian coup of 1970. However, some elements of FULRO, dissatisfied with the treaty, continued armed resistance in the Central Highlands. These disparate armed groups looked forward to the collapse of the Saigon regime and had some local cooperation with the Viet Cong, who offered unofficial support such as caring for their wounded.^[11]

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