ABSTRACT
The 9th Plenum marked a crucial moment of truth. The Party's line on reunification, set in September 1954, had been a failure. In July a massive effort was launched in the rural areas where meetings, parades and demonstrations were held. Leaflets, banners, and slogans painted on walls and houses demanding 'consultations', 'unification' and an 'end to terrorism' made their appearance. In June 1956, the Nam Bo Regional Committee held its first conference to review the results of the political struggle movement. The conclusions reached at this gathering were brought into accord with the Central Committee's views. In the period from April to July, 1956 the Democratic Republic of Viet-Nam (DRVN) publicly committed itself to a series of specific proposals on consultations and elections with the RVN. By early 1956 Diem was firmly in political control in the south, having turned back the various challenges to his regime described earlier.
