Editing Conspiracy BBS Archive/cia info (section)

===LAOS:  THE SECRET ARMY===


The CIA was involved in what has been regarded by many
experts as the most outstanding example of the depth and
magnitude of the clandestine operations of a major power in
the post-war period.  What is being referred to is the CIA's
operations in Laos, known as the "secret army".  The CIA's
"secret war" in Laos went on for over a decade, involving "a
military force of over 100,000 men, and in which were dropped
over two million tons of bombs, as much as had been loosed on
all Europe and the Pacific Theatre in World War II".
     
The CIA involvement in Laos began with a presence in the
country in the late 1950s.  Initially, the operation involved
air supply and paramilitary training of the Meo tribesmen to
help them defend their country against the North Vietnamese. 
However, the operation gradually evolved into a full-scale
management of the ground war in Laos by the CIA.
     
According to Fred Branfman, what the CIA did in Laos was
very simple.

It created an army of its own, an army paid,
controlled, and directed by American CIA officials
entirely separately from the normal Laotian
government structure...Some troops from every
people in Southeast Asia were bought into Laos as
part of what became known as "the secret army". 
The CIA trained the secret army; directed it in
combat; decided when it would fight; and had it
carry out espionage missions, assassinations of
military and civilian figures, and sabotage.


As was mentioned earlier, the U.S. dropped over two-
million tons of bombs on Laos.  The majority of those raids
were targeted by CIA officials, not Air Force officials.  The
CIA officials worked at Udorn Air Force base.  They were a
special team of photo reconnaissance people who, because the
CIA had men at Udorn and on the ground, bureaucratically
decided which targets would be bombed.
     
In Laos, the CIA put a great deal of emphasis on
psychological warfare.  Americans were told in the early '60s
that the core of our program in Laos would be to win the
"minds and hearts" of the people.  Indeed, a tremendous
attempt was made to do just that through land reform,
education, and economic assistance.  However, by the time
President Nixon took office, winning the "hearts and minds"
of the people had failed and the emphasis was shifted to
controlling their behavior.  The reasoning behind the shift
in emphasis was simple.  Although the United States might not
be able to change the way the people thought, it could
certainly control their political behavior.