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We, The People Who Care About the Future of Vietnam, Stand Divided
By John Carey (about the author) Page 1 of 2 page(s)
For OpEdNews: John E. Carey - Writer
To me, clemency is clemency. I applaud and congratulate and thank the government of Communist Vietnam.
But others do not see it that way.
And that is O.K. too.
Mike Benge sent me this:
"As sop to the Senator Martinez and to the President, "Cuc" Foshee is headed for home; but what about the hundreds of other political prisoners. Remember, Cuc was convicted as a terrorist by the Vietnamese communists for meeting with members of the Vietnamese underground democracy movement. What is one regime's terrorist, is another's freedom and democracy fighter."
I admire Mike Benge. Greatly.
My friend Mike Benge was an enlisted "peacetime Marine" (1955-1959).
As the war in Vietnam heated up, Mike went to Vietnam in 1963 with the International Voluntary Services (forerunner of the Peace Corps) and joined what is now the U.S. Agency for International Development as a Foreign Service Officer in 1965.
Mike was serving as the senior civilian CORDS (Combined Operations Rural Development Support) advisor in Vietnam and was captured by the Communist North Vietnamese during Tet of 1968 while attempting to rescue 4 U.S. volunteers and a group of Missionaries.
Despite the fact that Mike was not a uniformed member of the U.S. Armed Forces, the Vietnamese Communists treated him with the same distain doled out to men like John McCain, James Stockdale and many others.
Mike was joined in prison by two missionaries who later died of malnutrition.
Mike was held captive by the Communists for just over 5 years. The first year, he was held in 12 different camps in South Vietnam. He was held one year in Cambodia then in and three different camps in North Vietnam.
Mike spent 27 months in solitary confinement, one year in a cage and one year in a black box. Finally he reached the Hanoi Hilton where the uniformed American POWs were held. He was released during Operation Homecoming in 1973.
Mike received the State Department's highest award for Heroism for saving the lives of 11 USAID personnel prior to his capture and a medal for Valor for his actions during his imprisonment.
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