Provisional Revolutionary Government of South Vietnam
| Provisional Revolutionary Government of the Republic of South Vietnam | ||||||||||
| Chính phủ Cách mạng lâm thời Cộng hòa miền Nam Việt Nam | ||||||||||
| (1969–75) Transitional government (1975–76) |
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Anthem Giải phóng miền NamEnglish: "Release the South" Also used: Tien Quan Ca |
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| Capital |
Lộc Ninh (1969–75) Sai Gon (1975–76) |
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| Languages | Vietnamese | |||||||||
| Religion |
Buddhism Confucianism Taoism |
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| Government | Unitary Marxist–Leninist one-party state | |||||||||
| Head of state | Nguyễn Hữu Thọ | |||||||||
| Head of government | Huỳnh Tấn Phát | |||||||||
| Historical era | Cold War · Vietnam War | |||||||||
| • | Government formed | June 8, 1969 | ||||||||
| • | Unification with North Vietnam | July 2, 1976 | ||||||||
| Area | ||||||||||
| • | 1973 | 173,809 km² (67,108 sq mi) | ||||||||
| Population | ||||||||||
| • | 1973 est. | 19,370,000 | ||||||||
| Density | 111.4 /km² (288.6 /sq mi) | |||||||||
| Currency | Liberation dong | |||||||||
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| Today part of |
 Vietnam
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| Provisional Revolutionary Government of the Republic of South Vietnam | |
| Vietnamese name | |
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| Vietnamese alphabet | Chính phủ Cách mạng lâm thời Cộng hoà miền Nam Việt Nam |
| Chữ Nôm | 政府革命臨時共和面南越南 |
Also used: Tien Quan Ca
English: "Marching Song"
The Provisional Revolutionary Government of the Republic of South Vietnam, or PRG, was formed on June 8, 1969, as an underground government opposed to the South Vietnamese government of President Nguyễn Văn Thiệu. Delegates of the National Liberation Front (the Viet Cong), as well as several smaller groups, participated in its creation.
The PRG was recognized as the government of South Vietnam by most communist states. It signed the 1973 Paris Peace Treaty as a separate party. It became the provisional government of South Vietnam following the military defeat of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam on April 30, 1975. On July 2, 1976, the PRG and North Vietnam merged to form the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.
Predating the PRG was the Alliance of National, Democratic, and Peace Forces made up of anti-government forces and headed by Trinh Dinh Thao. The Alliance were a collection of individuals who wanted a new South Vietnamese government but disagreed with the ever-present Northern Communist presence.
There had been talk of setting up an Alliance as early as 1966, but the South Vietnamese Intelligence had arrested an anti-government organizer, Ba Tra. Ba Tra gave the South Vietnamese government extensive information on anti-government forces working in the city. This setback was compounded by his identification of one of the key cadre in the financial division.
Under torture, Ba Tra identified more figures in the underground. These were then rounded up. By 1967, the entire Saigon organization had been sent further underground. The Tet Offensive during 1968 triggered a wave of oppression, forcing many people into the jungle. These people – businessmen, middle class, doctors and other professionals – started The Alliance.
The then-new American president, Richard Nixon, started a process of Vietnamization to allow the American to withdraw from Vietnam. One of the tenets of Vietnamization was responsible government in South Vietnam. To prevent the Americans from installing their own government, a conference was held on June 6–8, 1969, off Route 22 in Cambodia's Fishhook area.
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Wikipedia