LONG before the Americans arrived in strength, official corruption was a tacitly accepted tradition in South Viet Namas it is elsewhere in Asia. Indeed, the term does not have the same meaning to Asians as it does to Westerners. Vietnamese officials were always poorly paid, and they were expected to find ways of substantially increasing their salaries by means of minor shakedowns or kickbacks. In the present war, however, big-league corruption involving huge profits has roared out of hand among top officials and military men.
The U.S. Government has usually remained silent about the...
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