0 - The Black Vault

THE BDM CORPORATION
secure" living conditions for the (lear majority of the population had been
achieved He said:
For the first time since 1961 all provincial capitals
can be reached by road with unescorted single vehicle
traffic during daylight hours.132/
A considerable measure of security had been restored and the
ability of the VC to affect events, to mobilize the people, to fight, to
tax and to recruit had been eroded to the point where it was a manageable
threat. On the other hand, neithe-v in 1970 nor dfterward was the Phoenix
Progvram able to dismantle fully or destroy the VC irfrastructure.133/
Blaufarb observed:
Both Phoenix and Revolutiorary Development suffe-ed
from a similar defecc. a simplified view of the
complexities of village life in Vietnam and of the
abf1ity of the central authority to irtervenp directly
in the internal arrangements of thousands of villages
similtaneously. Yet they were also overly complex
programs for the American arid Vietnamese personnel who
were required to carry them out, demanding too much
trained and dedicated r-anoower and a subtle approach
which was only possible if attempted on a small scale.
On the other hand, the programs which succeeded were
more direct and straightforward in concept. Unforturately,
they evolved only after the Vietnamese
leadership, particularly President Thieu, came to see
pacification as an urgent and major priority, far too
late for rapid achievement of the goals envisioned.134/
With respect to the GVN
strategy of re-energi:ing the villages,
as part of the 1969 Pacification and Development Plan, village and hamlet
elections were held in March, June and September of 1969.135/ President
Thieu promulgated decrees designed to enhance the powers of hamlet and
village governme'its and authorized their reorganization. Althoigh these
actions did no'
ni",lify all of the previously restrictive laws, they represented
the first attempt in the history of the country to decentralize the
GVN's power.136/
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