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Letter to the Editor

By VVAW

Dear Editor:

I was in Vietnam with the 5th Marines in 1970 when the mass graves around Hue City were discovered. President Nixon and others denounced the Viet Cong/NVA for having killed and buried all those people during their brief occupation of Hue during the Tet Offensive of 1968. That remains the common belief of what happened.

The 5th Marines were involved in re-taking the city, and there were people with us in 1970 who were doing a second tour, etc. who had been part of that re-taking battle. They chuckled at how our government had once again turned reality on its head and had sold the world a pack of lies - that during their time holding Hue City the VC/NVA had no opportunity to create mass graves, and that, in fact, most of the mass graves were not in areas they controlled. What really happened was that, whether or not the VC/NVA ever had the time or opportunity to wander around looking for particular people to assassinate, a greater loss of life undoubtedly occurred in the bitter street fighting involved in our side re-taking the city. It was a "take no prisoners" time when pretty much anything Vietnamese was fair game, and hand grenades were tossed in doorways before anyone poked their head in to see who, if anyone, was there. That result was an immense number of dead Vietnamese, some of whom were undoubtedly VC/NVA, but many of whom were undoubtedly civilians. What to do with all of those dead people? Mass graves, which only our side had the time and wherewithal to create.

I would love to hear (here in The Veteran) from people who were there. What is the true story of the mass graves at Hue City?

Sincerely,

John Arnold