Imposing Communism on the Economy of South Vietnam

A Conjectural View

by Hans Heymann

Download

Download Free Electronic Document

FormatFile SizeNotes
PDF file 0.8 MB

Use Adobe Acrobat Reader version 10 or higher for the best experience.

Purchase

Purchase Print Copy

 FormatList Price Price
Add to Cart Paperback15 pages $20.00 $16.00 20% Web Discount

Projects a postwar South Vietnam controlled by Hanoi's Communist regime. Reviewing the Lao Dong Party's past performance first, the author notes that goals of unification and national liberation were achieved through far-reaching purges of party enemies to establish collectivization. Communist objectives in the South might include development, consolidaton of political power, extraction of capital assets, reduction of disparity in wealth and living standards; but unprecedented problems are posed by (1) extraordinary dependence on U.S.-dollar-financed imports; (2) artificially high degree of urbanization; (3) monetization and commercialization of the countryside linking urban and rural economies. Given the postwar enforced austerity, reduced market output, and a need to feed the people, a Communist regime would increase its squeeze on the peasant, later moving toward revolutionary land reform, perhaps replaying the North's grim experience. The physical infrastructures serving the war effort would probably be dismantled and moved north.

This report is part of the RAND Corporation Paper series. The paper was a product of the RAND Corporation from 1948 to 2003 that captured speeches, memorials, and derivative research, usually prepared on authors' own time and meant to be the scholarly or scientific contribution of individual authors to their professional fields. Papers were less formal than reports and did not require rigorous peer review.

This document and trademark(s) contained herein are protected by law. This representation of RAND intellectual property is provided for noncommercial use only. Unauthorized posting of this publication online is prohibited; linking directly to this product page is encouraged. Permission is required from RAND to reproduce, or reuse in another form, any of its research documents for commercial purposes. For information on reprint and reuse permissions, please visit www.rand.org/pubs/permissions.

The RAND Corporation is a nonprofit institution that helps improve policy and decisionmaking through research and analysis. RAND's publications do not necessarily reflect the opinions of its research clients and sponsors.