Dang Sy

Major Matthew Sy Dang, (Vietnamese: Matheo Đặng Sỹ; born July 29, 1929 – died November 11, 2006^[1][2]) was an officer in the Army of the Republic of Vietnam. He acquired a degree of infamy for ordering his soldiers to open fire on a crowd of Buddhists demonstrating against a ban on the Buddhist flag, leading to the Huế Vesak shootings in which nine people died. This sparked the Buddhist crisis and downfall of the Catholic President of Vietnam, Ngo Dinh Diem.^{[citation needed]} .

Early life

Born in the province of Thừa Thiên, Huế, Sy Dang came from a long line of devout Roman Catholics, including Michael Dinh-Hy Ho, one of the "Vietnamese Martyrs".^[3] He attended a Lasallian school, graduated from National Military Academy of Da Lat as first Lieutenant. His father was a captain for the local national guard unit. At age 14, Sy Dang ventured as an interpreter for the local French garrison.

He tried the prospect of being a Christian Brother, like his mother's brother, but found out he was not suited for a pious, teaching life. He decided to follow a military career. Lieutenant Sy Dang married at the age of 21. His wife, Cam De Nguyen, came from a long line of devout Buddhists. Her paternal grandmother was a daughter of Minh Mạng. Her maternal side was another line of successful mandarins. She converted to Roman Catholicism. They had 10 children.^{[citation needed]}

Military career

After his graduation from Vietnamese National Military Academy of Da Lat and attended U.S. Infantry Center & School at Fort Benning, Sy Dang quickly progressed to the rank of major, assigned to the First Infantry Division and was named as deputy Governor and Security Chief, in charge of Thừa Thiên and Huế city. While in this position, he was embroiled in the midst of political unrests such as the Huế Vesak shootings. He ordered his men to open fire on the demonstrators, and nine died in the ensuing chaos.^{[citation needed]}.

The trial of Dang Sy

As Deputy Governor in charge of Huế's security, Major Sy Dang was held responsible for the deaths of nine Buddhists. Many accounts, which included official CIA reports and U.S. State Department Weekly reports, indicated that Major Dang took direct actions that caused these deaths.^[4][5] There are other minority accounts, which suggested Major Dang was at the right time and place for a set-up by third party with interests in seeing the Diem Regime fell. Some sources, including journalists Arthur Dommen and Ellen Hammer, have speculated that an American serviceman and a handful CIA operatives orchestrated the entire affair.^[6]

Marguerite Higgins and an independent United Nations investigative team reported on May 8, 1963 at 8:00 p.m. that a large crowd, under the leadership of Thich Tri Quang, besieged Huế radio station demanding religious rights. The station director refused their demands and barricaded himself. He called on the local fire station and government security forces for help. The firemen were unable to disperse the crowd with fire hose. Major Dang's security forces arrived, with armored vehicles, to negotiate with the venerable and the station director. An agreement was reached and the venerable was working to disperse the crowd. A series of explosions blasted exterior of the radio station while Major Dang and Thich Tri Quang was inside, causing a massive stampede. In defense against possible Viet Cong attack in darkness, Dang signaled his men, with three shots to the air, to use MK3A2 concussion grenades to subdue the crowd and secure the area. After the crowd dispersed, there were 8 people dead and 1 person dying. ^[7]

While the First Republic government dismissed charges of misconducts in 1963, the Military Junta tried and pressed a death sentence for Major Dang in 1964. Throughout the trial, the prosecution lined many charges against Dang, which included shooting into unarmed crowd, having armored vehicles ran over protesters, and using dangerous, high explosives for crowd control. Dang, primarily on his own, maintained his and his men's innocence in the cause of deaths.^{[citation needed]}

Fifty men were released. When the military tribunal pronounced sentence, thousands lined the streets in protest, prompting many international observers to speculate an internal civil war was about to erupt.^[8] Facing internal unrest and U.S. government disapproval, the Nguyen Khanh Military Tribunal communed Major Dang's death sentence to life at Con Son Pennitary with payment to the victims families.^{[citation needed]}

Post-military career

In 1967, the Nguyễn Văn Thiệu civilian government repealed the life sentence and restored his rank. Dang chose to resign to civilian life and worked at Bank of America in Saigon. From 1969 until the Fall of Saigon, he was the chairman of the executive board for an import-export company, South Asia Facilities. After April 1975, Dang was imprisoned again for his military career with the former regime. In March 1980, Dang was released and escaped to Indonesia by boat. He was reunited with his family in December of the same year. Subsequently, he worked with Baltimore County Department of Social Services and USA Catholic Charities to help his fellow refugees until his retirement.

Death

Sy Dang died on Armistice Day in 2006 at the age of 77.

U.S. news headlines 1963-66

• Letters to The Times; Diem Regime Assailed Religious Favoritism, Intolerance and Persecution Charged. New York Times - August 2, 1963
• Start Trial For Murder. Gettysburg Times - June 2, 1964
• Vietnamese Major Enters Innocent Plea. Eugene Register-Guard - June 2, 1964
• Saigon Trying Officer As Slayer of Buddhists. New York Times - June 3, 1964
• Major Asked to Blame Bishop. Chicago Tribune - June 3, 1964
• Viet Officer Gets Life For Killing Buddhists. Hartford Courant - June 7, 1964
• Religious-political Furor In Viet Nam Sparks Noisy March. Gadsden Times - June 8, 1964
• VIETNAM OFFICER DRAWS LIFE TERM; Convicted of Killing Eight. New York Times - June 7, 1964
• Protest Against Military Rule, 100,000 marched. Keesing's World News - Decrmber 1, 1964
• State Woman Fights for Major's Freedom. Owosso Argus-Press - March 1966

References

1. ^ Dates of birth and death per Social Security Death Index, under surname DANG, firstname SY
2. ^ "Tributes: Because Every Life Has a Story..."
3. ^ "The Situation in Vietnam", CIA Weekly Report (June 1964)
4. ^ "South VietNam: Again, the Buddhists". Time Magazine (June 1964)
5. ^ Telegram From the Embassy in Vietnam to the Department of State (June 1964)
6. ^ "The Indochinese experience of the French and the Americans: Nationalism and Communism in Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam"
7. ^ "JFK and the unspeakable: Why He Died and Why It Matters"
8. ^ "Death Sentence Asked for Vietnamese Major"

External links

• Lodge in Vietnam: A Patriot Abroad by Anne E. Blair; Yale University Press (1995)
• "The Impossible Prayer", The Baltimore Sun (1987)

Persondata
Name	Dang Sy
Alternative names	Matthew Sy Dang
Short description	South Vietnamese military officer
Date of birth	July 29, 1929
Place of birth	Vietnam (French Indochina)
Date of death	November 11, 2006
Place of death	Maryland, United States