The Spy Who Loved Us_ The Vietnam War and Pham Xuan An's Dangerous Game ( PDFDrive )

The Work
of Hunting Dogs
W
hen France regained control of Vietnam in 1945, An’s
father, Vien, was afraid to return to his post in Rach Gia.
He took refuge in Can Tho for a year, until he thought it safe
to resume his old position. He had encouraged his surveyors
and the rest of his staff to join the Viet Minh, and they had
fought the Japanese, the British, and now the French. The
colonial administration doubted Pham Xuan Vien’s allegiance,
since he had declined an offer of French citizenship in 1942. By
1947 they were using tougher measures.
“My father got into a lot of trouble with the French security
in Rach Gia,” An says. “They called him in for interrogations,
day after day, night after night. Everyone who worked for
him had abandoned the French zone and joined the revolution.
They put the blame on him. He was intimidated by the French.
He was scared. He couldn’t sleep. That’s why he got tuberculosis.”
By 1947 Vien’s health was so precarious that he was admitted
to the tuberculosis ward at Cho Ray hospital in Saigon.
“This was the year I was supposed to go back into the jungle
to join the revolution,” An says. “I went home to see my
45