1. New Nations in Southeast Asia
Pages
New Nations in Southeast Asia

2. Objectives Describe the French colonial control in Southeast Asia
Trace the sequence of events before, during, and after the Vietnam War

3. Vietnam

5. Colonialism
French established colonies in Vietnam, Laos “pronounced louse”, and Cambodia
Britain took over Burma
Thailand remained independent

6. Vietnam – A colony of France
Vietnam = an important source of raw materials
French colonists sent tons of rice, coal, and tin back to France
The French got wealthy, the Vietnamese suffered

7. 1920’s Vietnam Anti-French feelings
Formed organizations to oppose French rule
One group = Vietnam communists led by Ho Chi Minh (wanted to create an independent Vietnam)
Led protests, labor strikes

8. Captured by Japan During WWII, the Japanese captured Vietnam
Japan used Vietnam’s resources to support its war effort
Rice was shipped to Japanese soldiers, leaving little for the people of Vietnam
More than two million starve to death

9. Vietnamese Communists (Viet Minh)
Viet Minh start to take control as Japanese crumble at end of WWII
Viet Minh capture northern region
Ho Chi Minh declared independence and became nation’s new leader

10. French don’t give up…
Aided by the British, went to war against communists
After 8 years of fighting, the French lose a huge battle at Dien Bien Phu
Sign an armistice

11. Armistice
Definition: an agreement made by opposing sides in a war to stop fighting for a certain time; a truce
The armistice called for Vietnam to be divided in half until elections to unify the nation could be held
Communists continued to control North Vietnam
French controlled South Vietnam

12. The United States in Vietnam
Armistice failed to bring peace
U.S. was afraid of the spread of communism (stood firm against communism in the Cold War)
Wanted to preserve democratic governments in Southeast Asia

13. War Breaks Out South Vietnamese rebels were supported by North Vietnam
U.S. began to help South Vietnam in 1954 – provided the country with weapons, money, and advisors
In 1965, U.S. sent troops and planes to help in the fighting

15. The end of the war
Public opinion in U.S. became divided as American troops suffered losses
By 1973, U.S. began removing troops out of Vietnam
Two years later, South Vietnam surrendered to North Vietnam
More than 58,000 Americans died and nearly two million Vietnamese died

16. After the War Vietnam faced serious problems
Much of the country had been damaged by bombing and ground fighting
Communist government took control of property and businesses after the war
Planting crops was dangerous – fields contained unexploded bombs after the war

17. Many Vietnamese were unhappy with the communist government….
More than one million South Vietnamese left their nation on overcrowded boats
Decided to risk their lives at sea to settle in free countries rather than live under a communist government
More than 600,000 moved to the U.S.

18. Change in Southeast Asia
Vietnam also had trouble with it’s neighbor, Cambodia
Cambodia’s leader, Pol Pot, had come to power in 1975
Pol Pot’s rule was a REIGN OF TERROR
Educated Cambodians were considered enemies, and many were murdered
More than one million people were killed
In 1978, Vietnamese soldiers invaded Cambodia, forcing Pol Pot and his supporters to flee
The U.N. supervised elections in 1993, and the Vietnamese troops left Cambodia

19. Sum it Up
In the middle 1800s the French began to establish a colony in Vietnam
The colony of Vietnam provided France with raw materials
After WWII the Viet Minh fought for independence from France
The U.S. fought with South Vietnam against communist forces in North Vietnam until 1973
1975 Vietnam became unified, but faced economic and social problems