No Objection to Declassification in Part 2010/03/10: LOC- 4- 24- 214W ?y I
MEMORANDUM - 3575 

[State Dept. review completed]

'wm?pj

 

 

NATIONAL sitcom-?r- COUNCIL

  

'7 IN FARMATION

ONLY (1:13 23,1973

  
 

 

MR. KISSINGER i

FROM: WILLIAM L. STEARMAN 

ti" - . -
SUBJECT . Embassy Efforts to Avoid a ?One Party? 1/ 
Senate Election in South Vietnam 

 

 

per 005106402]

 


Attached at Tab A is a report from the CIA describing efforts we made?
in Saigon to avoid the threat of a "one party" Senate election in South
Vietnam Scheduled for August. To our knowledge none of these

 

25X1 3' activities were cleared by the and this report represents our first
word on what appears to have been a major intrusion on internal 
politics. 

 

The?Agency and'the Embassy clearly were reaponding to the possibility-1
that only Thieu's Democracy Party would contest the planned election
for one?half of the Senate?s membership; Other parties were not
expected to participate as a result of a tight filing schedule which, they
claimed, did not provide sufficient time "to negotiate formation of lists
and their fears that the election would be loaded in Thieu' favor. In

a memo of June 16 (2 days before the filing cutoff), the Agency had
alerted us to the possibility of a one party election but had not indicated
the actions it was then taking to avert this contingency. (In any event
the memo was OBE by the time we received it. The filed date had
passed and four s?ates registered.)

Although or independent slates filed for the election, four
groups (two associated with Thieu and two unknown, probably GVN-
inspired lists) registered. The Embassy has commented that Thieu's

lists are certain of victory and that he therefore will control the formerly
independent Upper House. Significantly, the Embassy has also apportioned
the blame for this largely no- -contest election to both the administration

and the politicians, who had ample warning of the legal filing schedule

yet -- apparently-without harassment -- failed to compose their own
differences to file a joint Senate slate. NSC RELEASEINSTRUCTIONS AppLy]

 

 

SECRET IEYES ONLY XGDS 5B (2) by Auth CIA

No Objection to Declassification in Part 2010/03/10 

 

so 



 





"oa-52;; .A

4' ?us-[gr ??44141 1 

 

. yo Objection to Declassification in Part 2010/03/10 

DC. 20503

?3 1 am: :st

FOR: The Honorebie . . .
A: a! AsSistant Sedretahy Tor esian
and Pacific Affairs
Department of State

nedy

Coionei Richerq Ke . ?n
i ouhcii Star.

Nationai Secur ty

(-37.3

1 I . .3. ll 
SUBJECT: tforts to Avert a "0ne-Par.y Senate E18CL1OH in
South Vietnam .

1 On 16 June 1973, we sent you an assessment of President A

0 I V.

Wguyen Van Thieu's prohebie strategy in tne Senate E1ECL1OHS scheuuled

b? I I I r- 

for August 1973. ?The foiiowing is a resiew or the erTorts made by the

ll 

Mission in Vietnam to avert a "one?party 

0? 26 August 3
.I.

Senators, or approximet- 

Anticipating a I 

done to the Government or 1e_ Is . .

and abroad by the uncontested presicentiai election orL3971, the U.q? La

Government sbught ta encourage broad pert1c1pation in L?e upcoming senate

eiections, -



on and remembering the,
es

3. Diplomatic representetions imoressed ?pon PZeSident?Tn1eu12233
other GVN 1eeders the desirability_oi the presence Ol'?gioz1bl0ntierea
in the eiection so as to DTOYE that the voters wouidLighce ??9?-eev
a genuine choice. The GUN did remove the re?uiremeht that_cenc:dat 
for the Senate had to be sponsored by poiiticai parties wnicn nc
qcaiified ?uw?n the Peiiticai Parties Decree Law 000.

Huh.-

 

 

 

 

 

25X1

 




-- In?:

DE. 

 

 

. 
eyes ONLY

 

 

 

 i 52cm? 
No Objection to Declassification in? Part LOC25X1

 

 

 

FOR THE DEPUTY DIRECTOR FOR 

 

 

 


. Ehaodora G. Shackle?
I . Theodore G. Shackiey
?(Irma
I Iai?uzn In..Inu 
'l 
. - .13 L'ni-I .I 
. i 2
I SEC ETISEN EITIVE-