ABSTRACT
The impact of increased enemy military operations and 'Chieu Hoi' programs has, on the whole, resulted in lowering the morale of some ideologically backward men, who often listen to enemy radio broadcasts, keep in their pockets enemy leaflets, and wait to be issued weapons. The primary focus of this psychological attack was the government's American-inspired and funded amnesty invitation, the Chieu Hoi or "Open Arms" Program. Modeled after British and Philippine counter insurgency operations in the 1950s, the Chieu Hoi policy was adopted in 1963 as a magnanimous offer of forgiveness and exoneration to those who had been temporarily seduced into following the "alien" Communist path—"Try every way to escape from this bloody war created by the communists," they were told. In spite of the importance of the surrender program for the Northern troops, the Chieu Hoi policy, aimed primarily at the home-grown Southern Viet Cong, received the greatest amount of American emphasis and money.
