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by William H. Chickering.
Hardback (6.3×9.3 inches). 248 pages. 2025.
Subtitle: Fulro: The Other National Liberation Front – Vietnam 1955-75
In reading about the Vietnam War, I often ran across the Montagnards — a highlands peoples more or less supported by the US who fought against the North Vietnamese. What I never heard of was that they had built a semi-organized movement — Front Uni por la Liberation des Races Oppremees (FULRO) or Liberation Front for Oppressed Races — to create their own country.
The history of the Montagnards is intertwined with the various invaders over the centuries, the latest ones being the French, Japanese, North Vietnamese Communists, and South Vietnamese. Six leaders from the 1950s to the 1970s tried and failed to secure recognition for the efforts and the Vietnam veteran author tracked down five of them. The book conveys the detective work needed to uncover the history of FULRO, taking the author all over the world tracking down people and documents.
Besides the biographies, the politics of the period and how it affected the Montagnards peels back the revolutionary impetus for FULRO. The main military action consisted of attacking and capturing multiple base camps as the catalyst for the declaration of autonomy. As you can tell from history, it wasn’t a success, but it was ambitious.
The book contains 29 black and white photos and five black and white maps.
It’s always fascinating to discover a war within a war and the efforts made to create a country out of the larger Vietnam War.
Enjoyed it.
— Reviewed by Russ Lockwood
