general vang pao biography
New. She didn't mince words. The general led troops into combat personally, suffered serious wounds and was known to declare: If we die, we die together. continue to use the site without a Central in the controversy, scandals, and lawsuits, including one by the Minnesota Attorney General, was Cha Vang's role with the Vang Pao Foundation, a funeral home, a chamber of commerce in St. Paul, and other financial and political dealings. [35][36], The Vang Pao Foundation was forced to close following investigation by authorities and a lawsuit by the attorney general of Minnesota. PDF 2019 General Vang Pao Final - Hmong American Education Fund There are many more secrets and tales from the past, so Lee and I call on the eldest sister. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. At that time, during the war, it's either they kill me or I kill them, he told NBC Asian America through his son, Toufu Yang. Vang, an ethnic Hmong, was born on 8 December 1929, in a Hmong village named Nonghet, located in Central Xiangkhuang Province, in the northeastern region of Laos, where his father, Neng Chu Vang, was a county leader . I never knew his story. Vang Pao: The general who wouldn't give up the battle Would they be like my grandmother? Family, friends and members of the Hmong community crowd the Fresno Convention Center for the funeral. Vang Pao, the Laotian general who marshalled a CIA mercenary army to fight a "secret war" against communist insurgents in the remote mountains of Laos in the 1960s, has . The next year, he would also fight Communists from Vietnam after they had crossed the Laotian border. Hmong General Vang Pao, a courageous and powerful leader, worked in tandem with the CIA to conduct covert operations in Laos. General Vang Pao quickly organized 7,000 guerrillas, then steadily increased the force to 39,000, leading them in many successful battles, often against daunting odds. Some have called him the "George Washington of the Hmong." Vang didn't deny the charge, but countered that the CIA was well aware of his plans to send American weapons to his former comrades in arms. Love? His reputation was further damaged when he was arrested in 2007, with other Hmong activists and a retired US military officer, for conspiracy to procure weapons of war, including Stinger missiles, to launch a terrorist attack on strategic buildings in Vientiane, the Laotian capital. In his early teen years, Vang Pao launched his military career, joining the French Military to protect fellow Hmong during the Japanese invasion. (NEWS)", Associated Press (3 April 2004) "Hmong Tribesmen Seek Resettlement in Laos", Kennedy, Tony, Star Tribune (Minneapolis, Minnesota) (5 July 2005) "THE COVERT WARS OF VANG PAO; Ex-guerrilla's gamble for peace backfires; With his empire unraveling, Gen. Vang Pao met with the enemy, a tactic that to his people felt like a total betrayal. "Vang Pao was a great man and a true American hero. "Whether they're young or old, they hear his name, there's the respect that goes with it.". Former Hmong Gen. Vang Pao (right) in May 2000 during a wreath-laying ceremony at the Vietnam Memorial in Washington, D.C. hide caption. Commanding tens of thousandsof Hmong men and women, Vang Pao conducted direct missions against communistforces. He was a leader in the Hmong American community in the United States. FRESNO, Calif. (AP) -- Vang Pao, a revered former general in the Royal Army of Laos who led thousands of Hmong guerrillas in a CIA-backed secret army during the Vietnam War, has died. Following this appearance, on April 6, 2009, federal prosecutors denied all allegations of fabrications in the motion. The Minnesota Star Tribune and St. Paul Pioneer Press reported extensively on these matters. It was a hefty sum back then, he said, and he eventually came to own two houses and three cars. log out. GENERAL VANG PAO SCHOLARSHIP THE PRAYA NORAPARMORK GENERAL VANG PAO LEADERSHIP LEGACY MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP FUND APPLICATION PACKET December 8, 1929 - January 6, 2011 PRESENTED BY THE HMONG AMERICAN EDUCATION FUND www.thehaef.org This scholarship was donated by Dr. James Nhia Vang & his wife Vanessa Yang in loving memory of General Vang Pao. Many Hmong had participated in numerous protests over several weeks in California and elsewhere, calling for Pao's release from the date of his incarceration until his release under bail nearly a month later. Behind the news are values that drive people and nations. Credit: Wikipedia Wikipedia After fighting as a teenager against the Japanese in World War II and the North Vietnamese in the 1950s, Vang Pao became the first Hmong to achieve the rank of general .