VZCZCXRO4989
RR RUEHCHI RUEHDT RUEHHM
DE RUEHHI #1747/01 1920755
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 110755Z JUL 06
FM AMEMBASSY HANOI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 2701
INFO RUEHHM/AMCONSUL HO CHI MINH CITY 1473
RUEHZS/ASEAN REGIONAL FORUM COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 HANOI 001747 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EAP/MLS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL PINR VM
SUBJECT: (SBU) HANOI MUSEUMS CONTINUE TO DEFAME THE UNITED STATES, 
BUT INTEREST IN THESE EXHIBITIONS IS LOW 
 
HANOI 00001747  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary and Comment:  Pol Assistant recently surveyed the 
depiction of the United States in Hanoi's main military and 
political museums.  Exhibits at most military service and political 
museums cast a negative image of U.S. involvement during the Vietnam 
War, but the denigration is on par with standard GVN propaganda.  By 
contrast, an exhibition at a museum devoted to the history of the 
Communist revolution in Vietnam accuses the U.S. military of wartime 
atrocities through the deliberate misrepresentation of artifacts and 
images, while the exhibit at the former "Hanoi Hilton" praises the 
model behavior of Vietnamese authorities towards U.S. prisoners 
without mention of North Vietnamese torture of GIs.  Despite the 
continued bias of Hanoi's anti-United States exhibitions, they 
appear to be largely ignored by the Vietnamese public, most of whom 
were born after 1975.  Nonetheless, we consider the depictions 
inappropriate and will approach GVN authorities about developing 
displays more appropriate to the current bilateral relationship. 
End Summary and Comment. 
 
¶2. (SBU) Pol Assistant recently visited the National Museum of 
Vietnamese History (History Museum), the Museum of Vietnamese 
Revolution (MVR), Hoa Lo Prison Historic Vestige (Hoa Lo Prison, 
a.k.a. the "Hanoi Hilton"), the Military History Museum (Army 
Museum), the Ho Chi Minh Museum (HCM Museum) and the "B-52 Victory" 
Museum (Air Force Museum) to evaluate the state of displays about 
the United States.  On June 28, Pol Assistant visited the History 
Museum and the MVR in Hanoi.  Located in the historic center of the 
city, both museums appear poorly staffed and ill-maintained.  Apart 
from a group of about 20 Vietnamese soldiers touring the MVR, there 
were very few visitors at either museum.  Focusing on Vietnam's 
ancient history, the History Museum has on display numerous 
paintings, sculptures and other artifacts predating the French 
colonial period.  The only reference to the United States in the 
museum is contained in a caption commenting on Vietnam's Declaration 
of Independence, which borrows its first line from the U.S. 
Declaration of Independence. 
 
Accusations of U.S. War Crimes 
------------------------------ 
 
¶3. (SBU) With a significant number of photos, war objects and 
"torture instruments," the MVR traces Vietnam's "independence 
movement" during the 20th century.  An entire section of the museum 
is dedicated to the "American War" and revisits U.S. involvement 
from 1955 with the arrival of American military advisors in South 
Vietnam, to 1973 with the departure of U.S. military personnel after 
the Paris Agreement.  There is no recognition of South Vietnam's 
legitimate existence or of the willing participation of millions of 
southern Vietnamese in the war.  A sign at the entrance of the 
section identifies the United States as an authoritarian occupying 
force, which launched "a destructive war against Vietnam."  While 
the initial pictures on display are not particularly objectionable, 
the captions often provide a dishonest representation of innocuous 
situations.  For instance, a photo of a U.S. officer disembarking 
from an airplane is described as "American military advisor arrives 
in Saigon to discuss plans for aggression."  Likewise, a picture of 
a meeting between U.S. and South Vietnamese officials is depicted as 
"American military advisors command Saigon's vassal regime and 
puppet army." 
 
¶4. (SBU) Furthermore, out-of-context descriptions allege human 
rights abuses and war crimes by the U.S. military.  For example, 
obvious pictures of public political demonstrations, construction of 
strategic hamlets and Viet Cong prisoners of war are respectively 
labeled as "mass arrests", "forced relocation" and "reeducation of 
Vietnamese civilians."  One caption suggests that "a U.S. soldier 
sets fire to a village and massacres a great number of people," 
although the photo merely show an individual standing next to a hut 
with a lighter.  Similarly, a picture of an anti-war protest, where 
a monk immolates himself, is entitled "American repression of 
Buddhism."  Captions of a variety of objects also serve to criticize 
U.S. military operations.  Rotted shackles are used as evidence of 
the brutality of U.S. officials and described as "chains used by 
Americans to lock prisoners...Vietnamese experienced barbarous 
torture by the American administration."  Under the combined 
displays of bombshells and anti-toxic masks, a caption reads: 
"American planes spread toxic chemicals," while next to it a broken 
Catholic cross is displayed as "American bombed religious sites." 
 
¶5. (SBU) Without providing any historical perspective or objective 
view, the MVR's showing also lacks the customary intellectual rigor 
of permanent exhibits.  Most of the pictures are not dated, no 
sources are mentioned and items do not correspond to captions. 
While the Vietnamese subtitles are translated in both English and 
French, the latter version often presents an even more biased 
description of U.S. conduct than the English translation.  Under a 
picture displaying a dead corpse next to a U.S. tank and soldiers, 
the English caption simply reads: "Americans kill Vietnamese 
villager," whereas the French description states: "Americans conduct 
 
HANOI 00001747  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
atrocious human killing of innocent Vietnamese villager." 
 
"Humane Treatment" for U.S. Prisoners 
------------------------------------- 
 
¶6. (SBU) On July 5, Pol Assistant visited Hoa Lo Prison, the 
infamous "Hanoi Hilton," located in the heart of Hanoi's central 
district.  The renovated site only preserves the southwest corner of 
the original French-built penitentiary which was converted from a 
train station.  The museum mostly relates the execrable living 
environment of Vietnamese prisoners jailed in the facility during 
the French colonial period.  Only the last two exhibition rooms 
address the North Vietnamese detention of U.S. servicemen in the 
facility.  These rooms depict "the comfortable life U.S. prisoners 
enjoyed during the Vietnam War."  Pictures of captured U.S. pilots 
playing volleyball and billiards, attending church service, 
celebrating Christmas and receiving medical treatment are displayed 
next to a sign stating: "Such is the life of U.S. prisoners in 
camps. All of them benefit the same advantage (sic); the lenient and 
humane policy of the Government of the Democratic Republic of 
Vietnam."  Replicas of daily-life items (cooking tools, leather 
shoes and hand-knitted sweaters) are also exhibited in a corner of 
the room, with a sign proclaiming: "During the war, the national 
economy was difficult but the Vietnamese government created the best 
living conditions to U.S. pilots."  There is no mention of 
Vietnamese torture of U.S. servicemen in the facility.  One wall 
showcases pictures of famous U.S. servicemen held in the facility, 
including Senator John McCain, Admiral John Stockdale and Ambassador 
Pete Peterson. 
 
¶7. (SBU) The section also provides the usual GVN points about U.S. 
"wrongdoings" during the war and the "altruism" of the Vietnamese 
people.  A large notice at the entrance of the other showroom claims 
that the "U.S. government carried out sabotage warfare by airforce 
and naval force (sic) against the people in the North of Vietnam," 
but the first photo of the room displays Hanoi residents rescuing 
downed pilots.  Pol Assistant listened in to a conversation between 
Western visitors and a museum tour guide, who attempted to stimulate 
a discussion by contrasting the decent treatment received by U.S. 
prisoners and the suffering of the Vietnamese people.  While the 
group of visitors remained evasive and reserved, other tour guides 
appeared more successful in engaging tourists with the standard 
comments at the end of each guided visit. 
 
Vietnamese Standard Propaganda and Nationalism 
--------------------------------------------- - 
 
¶8. (SBU) Pol Assistant also toured the Army, HCM and Air Force 
Museums.  Large groups of provincial Vietnamese (Note: Most of the 
tour buses originated from Central Vietnamese cities.  End Note.) 
visited the Army and HCM Museums, whereas no visitors were at the 
Air Force Museum.  Moderately well-maintained, each museum's exhibit 
provides the standard GVN propaganda on the Vietnam War and blames 
the "American aggression for the suffering of Vietnamese people." 
Signs throughout the Army and Air Forces Museums denounce "the 
cruelty of the Americans and the Diem Regime," but unlike the MVR, 
there are no excessive allegations of torture and very few items 
dealing with the issue.  Exalting the strength and the ingeniousness 
of the North Vietnamese armed forces, the Army and Air Force 
Museums' exhibitions also have on display captured U.S. tanks and 
wreckages of B-52 bombers.  The HCM Museum mainly showcases the life 
and work of HCM, with only a few pictures of "worldwide anti-war 
protests."  The only other serious reference to the United States is 
a display of an Indian Communist newspaper (New Age) front page 
glorifying HCM and asserting: "Nixon bows to heroism and humanity, 
Vietnam triumphs." 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
¶9. (SBU) The different exhibits in Hanoi museums still demonstrate 
the GVN's unwillingness to acknowledge its own failings during the 
war or provide an objective view of Vietnam's history. 
Nevertheless, these exhibitions do not substantially harm the image 
of the United States, since none appear to appeal to the general 
Vietnamese audience.  With the exception of provincial Vietnamese 
tourists visiting Hanoi, very few Vietnamese seem to take a serious 
interest in these exhibits, as evidenced by the low number of 
visitors and the aging, poorly-staffed museums.  On the other hand, 
these depictions are not appropriate for the current bilateral 
relationship.  We will approach the GVN about developing displays 
that better reflect the positive trend in U.S.-Vietnam ties.  In 
light of our success last year in winning back from the Vietnamese 
the Great Seals that used to hang in our then Embassy in Saigon and 
in an unknown U.S. Consulate in the south, we may be able to get 
some traction in this issue.  End Comment. 
 
MARINE