Charles Tran Van Lam
Encyclopedia
Charles Trần Văn Lắm, also known as simply Trần Văn Lắm, was Minister for Foreign Affairs for the Republic of Vietnam during the height of the Vietnam War
.
He was one of signers of the Paris Peace Accord in 1973. He was the first Vietnamese Ambassador
to Australia
in the late 1950s and became Foreign Minister in 1969. In 1973 he became the president of the Senate
of South Vietnam
. When Saigon fell
in 1975, Trần Van Lam was required to sign an undertaking not to take part in any political activities as a condition for his entry into Australia. He moved to Canberra
where he and his wife opened a coffee shop. On 6 February 2001, Charles Tran Van Lam died in his Canberra home, aged 88.
and trained as a pharmacist
. He was the founding Secretary General of the Vietnam Pharmacists Association before his election to the Saigon City Council in 1952, near the end of French colonial rule.
in the 1950s and the majority leader of the Assembly after that. In 1961, President
Ngo Dinh Diem
appointed him ambassador to Australia and New Zealand.
A soft-spoken urbane diplomat fluent in French and English, he remained in the post after Diem's assassination in 1963. Mr. Lam returned to private life as chairman of the Vietnam Commercial and Industrial Bank from 1964 to 1967. In 1969 he became the Minister for Foreign Affairs of South Vietnam.
A Vietnamese Diaspora (2005)
Directed by Judy Rymer, Australian Broadcasting Corporation
Best Documentary, ACT Film Awards, 2004
Bilan du Film Ethnographic, Paris, 2005
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
.
He was one of signers of the Paris Peace Accord in 1973. He was the first Vietnamese Ambassador
Ambassador
An ambassador is the highest ranking diplomat who represents a nation and is usually accredited to a foreign sovereign or government, or to an international organization....
to Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
in the late 1950s and became Foreign Minister in 1969. In 1973 he became the president of the Senate
Senate
A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a legislature or parliament. There have been many such bodies in history, since senate means the assembly of the eldest and wiser members of the society and ruling class...
of South Vietnam
South Vietnam
South Vietnam was a state which governed southern Vietnam until 1975. It received international recognition in 1950 as the "State of Vietnam" and later as the "Republic of Vietnam" . Its capital was Saigon...
. When Saigon fell
Fall of Saigon
The Fall of Saigon was the capture of Saigon, the capital of South Vietnam, by the People's Army of Vietnam and the National Liberation Front on April 30, 1975...
in 1975, Trần Van Lam was required to sign an undertaking not to take part in any political activities as a condition for his entry into Australia. He moved to Canberra
Canberra
Canberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of over 345,000, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory , south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Melbourne...
where he and his wife opened a coffee shop. On 6 February 2001, Charles Tran Van Lam died in his Canberra home, aged 88.
Early life
The son of a well-to-do real estate owner, Tran Van Lam was born in Cholon, a largely Chinese town next to Saigon. He was educated at Hanoi UniversityHanoi University
Hanoi University is a university in Hanoi, that specializes in language teaching including English, Japanese, Chinese, German, French, Russian, Korean, Portuguese, Spanish and Italian....
and trained as a pharmacist
Pharmacist
Pharmacists are allied health professionals who practice in pharmacy, the field of health sciences focusing on safe and effective medication use...
. He was the founding Secretary General of the Vietnam Pharmacists Association before his election to the Saigon City Council in 1952, near the end of French colonial rule.
Rise to Power
He moved up to the national legislature and was speaker of the Constituent AssemblyConstituent assembly
A constituent assembly is a body composed for the purpose of drafting or adopting a constitution...
in the 1950s and the majority leader of the Assembly after that. In 1961, President
President
A president is a leader of an organization, company, trade union, university, or country.Etymologically, a president is one who presides, who sits in leadership...
Ngo Dinh Diem
Ngo Dinh Diem
Ngô Đình Diệm was the first president of South Vietnam . In the wake of the French withdrawal from Indochina as a result of the 1954 Geneva Accords, Diệm led the effort to create the Republic of Vietnam. Accruing considerable U.S. support due to his staunch anti-Communism, he achieved victory in a...
appointed him ambassador to Australia and New Zealand.
A soft-spoken urbane diplomat fluent in French and English, he remained in the post after Diem's assassination in 1963. Mr. Lam returned to private life as chairman of the Vietnam Commercial and Industrial Bank from 1964 to 1967. In 1969 he became the Minister for Foreign Affairs of South Vietnam.
Media
All Points of the CompassA Vietnamese Diaspora (2005)
Directed by Judy Rymer, Australian Broadcasting Corporation
Charles Trần Van Lam had the ill-fated destiny to be foreign minister of South Vietnam during the devastating war with the North. He was a patriot, committed to seeing his country emerge from its colonial history. He was also the father of nine children, who with his wife formed a seemingly privileged family, which dined together, had vacations at the beach, learned musical instruments, and were instilled with their Vietnamese identity. As the war intensified, he and his wife made provisions for the children to leave the country. The nine children were dispersed to Australia, France, the U.S. and Scotland. The hope was that they would be educated abroad and bring their talents back to their native country.
That was not to be. Trần Van Lam was betrayed by the United States, his ally against the North. While he was a delegate to the Paris peace talks, Henry Kissinger secretly arranged the pull out with the North. Fortunate to be airlifted out at the fall of Saigon, he and his wife finally emigrated to Australia with one small bag, where they ultimately opened a coffee shop.
The adult children, now in mid -career with families of their own, speak poignantly about their experience of dislocation.They each longed to be re-united as a family and had to struggle to forge a new identity in a foreign land. They were all deeply affected by their father's expectations to become accomplished and"give back." Each one feels "multicultural." All Points of the Compass is at once a gripping portrait of the "immigrant experience" and a new perspective on the American role in the Vietnam War.
Best Documentary, ACT Film Awards, 2004
Bilan du Film Ethnographic, Paris, 2005
External links
- http://www.abc.net.au/tv/guide/netw/200505/programs/ZY7551A001D1052005T193000.htm "All Points of the Compass" ABC TV Guide
- http://www.filmakers.com/indivs/AllPointsCompass.htm
- http://www.abc.net.au/abccontentsales/s1171924.htm www.abc.net.au/abccontentsales/s1171924.htm
- http://www.abc.net.au/programsales/s1216105.htm
- http://www.theage.com.au/news/TV--Radio/A-loving-story/2005/04/27/1114462046661.html "A Loving Story" The Age, 28 April 2005
- http://nla.gov.au/nla.cs-pa-HTTP%253A%252F%252FNAA12.NAA.GOV.AU%252FSCRIPTS%252FSEARCHOLD.ASP%253FO%253DPSI2%2526NUMBER%253D8905763 - Charles Tran Van Lam presenting a cheque to the University of Sydney Chancellor on 6 October 1963
- http://www.rummage.com.au/AAPView.aspx?id=101432 - Article: 22 April 2005, Sydney
- http://ozevents.blogspot.com/2005_05_01_archive.html
- http://timelines.ws/countries/VIETNAMA.HTML Vietnam Timeline from 600B.C. through to 1973
- http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=940DE1D6103DF933A15750C0A9679C8B63
- http://www.nixonlibrary.gov/forresearchers/find/tapes/finding_aids/january1973.php Nixom White House Tapes