Southeast Asia in Turmoil!

Map

With clear defiance against French and with the clear and open orders to fire on any "Colonial Trooper" recently commissioned under Georges Thierry d'Argenlieu. What came of Indochina in the past 3-months would set off a chain-link of events that would change the region.

Once the order of his arrest came through Colonel Nguyễn Văn Xuân along with several thousand soldiers he had mustered in the past few months alone left down South, leaving Saigon completely undefended until both the Far East and the DRV's Viet-Minh (now paramilitaries) came to restore order. For many of the Viet Minh’s guerrillas, it was the first time marching into Saigon outside of a uniform. They continued into the city while the Far-East had their own bid of orders.

Vietnam

The Arrest

High Commissioner Georges Thierry d'Argenlieu sat in Saigon, sitting peacefully after writing the primers for the Constitution of the Federal Indochinese States before a section of his Indochinese Forces approached, his office doors remaining open. "My Lord," begins a French Soldier in their native tongue. He raised an eyebrow, his concentration on his work breaking - he was already done, what did it matter?

"Yes, Sergeant?" He responded, looking the soldier over as he had done every single other time he walked in. The Sergeant was hardly of zeal, more hardened from his time in prison than any battle. He was one of the few that was willing to accept the High Commissioners rapid call to bolster their forces.

"The Far-East are marching over here, they want to relieve you of your post and give control to the-" He was interrupted from saying a few slurs, realizing he was in the company of a few Vietnamese soldiers himself. They were loyalists so it's not as if it was something he himself wasn't used to. Nevertheless, the High Commissioner continued, "Have they been let in?" He asked, walking towards the balcony. He looked outside, listening to the sound of the busy streets from beyond his walled-compound.

"I don't hear any gunshots..." He murmured, for a moment wishing he was back home, in France. He knew everything was going to be downhill from here, especially the moment he heard of the resignation of Charles de Gaulle. "Damned Reds," he murmured. It was at this time he saw a formation of troops marching down the road.

"Don't let those bastards in!" He yelled down to his men who were manning the gates. The Commissioner turned back to the Sergeant, "go help them at the gate. Not a single bastard comes in." The section nodded, all scurrying towards the yard.

A few minutes had passed before the platoon sized formation of soldiers backed by one officer had marched all in formation to the gates. High Commissioner d'Argenlieu watched from the balcony as the officer spoke to the men, trying his best to listen to what he could. The Officer was having a conversation with the Sergeant, before long he strided forth a coin purse. His eyes widened once he saw the Sergeant pull the gate open and the men from the CEFEO had openly marched into the compound. The High Commissioner met the gaze of the one white man in the entire platoon, the officer. Led to his side were a number of Vietnamese soldiers in French uniform.

"Bastards," he murmured as the French Officer invited him downstairs. "High Commissioner, we're here to arrest you! Come with honours and you'll retain your pride! Make us come to you, you'll lose it as we drag you down!" The High Commissioner shouted down, "What pride is there working with these Red-Bellies?" The officer simply shrugged in response, apathetic to the situation.

"I'll come down..." The Commissioner said after a long pause, daydreaming of how he could've won this day.

He went into custody.

Cochinchina

Colonel Nguyễn Văn Xuân, now self-made Prime Minister Nguyễn Văn Xuân has taken with him approximately 15,000 troops from their controlled regions, ordering them down south to consolidate what he could and to protect themselves along the Mekong Delta. It was here he declared the State of Vietnam, its de-jure capital of Saigon with its de-facto capital being Can Tho. The Prime Minister made a promise that it would do what it could to restore order and retake the North, or at the very least Saigon.

Many citizens across Vietnam are supportive of the “State of Vietnam”, especially considering that it is indigineous but, to its heart, anti-communist. Most of the remaining French colonists in Vietnam (now numbering less than 5,000) have sought to join his cause. Xuân, however, has generally ignored them, judging that with the French military gone, he gains nothing from associating with his former overlords, especially with such a small number of mostly inexperienced volunteers with no official connections to their homeland. Right-leaning members of the coalition forces fighting against the French call for Prime Minister Xuân and President Ho to sit down and discuss peace. The DRV was still widely popular among the people and militarily superior, but every day that passed, Xuân’s men would gain sympathizers.

As the DRV’s men under the People’s Army of Vietnam (PAVN) begin to extend their control over the newly independent country, acts of both violent and passive resistance among various other anti-communist forces in Vietnam have begun to multiply.

In the Red River Delta and Central Annam, numerous Catholic communities have begun to refuse to pay taxes to the new government and are raising independent militias (rumor has it that many are being armed by sympathizers among the departing CEFEO forces).

In the Central Highlands and near the Chinese border, Tai, Katuic, and Bahnaric ethnic groups are refusing to acknowledge the authority of the new government, mostly by simply ignoring or avoiding whoever Hanoi sends to meet them. Where they do agree to talk, they generally state their desire to be simply left alone.

Probably the most concerning development for the DRV are defections within its own ranks. With the French gone and the CPV appearing ascendant, many members of the Nationalist and Trotskyist factions among the DRV have decided that their interests are better served by operating independently.

The more cautious of the Nationalist VNQDD have either retreated to the mountains near the Chinese border to connect with their benefactors in the KMT, while the other half of the party have begun openly organizing and recruiting in the Red River Delta, either optimistic about their chances or hoping that the DRV will honor its democratic ideals.

Meanwhile, the remnants of the Trotskyist International Communist League (ICL) have taken advantage of the power vacuum in Saigon to reach out to groups of urban workers. While most have remained loyal to the mainline CPV or at least neutral, the ICL have so far found allies among the city’s dockworkers and papermarkers, and have engaged in limited street fighting with CPV-aligned groups.

Cambodia

The situation in Cambodia hardly reflected the changes in Vietnam or Laos. King Sihanouk had been in power and hoped, especially with the French Administration leaving and the French Mandate gone, he would retain this power. It was with the news of the French leaving that he had prepared motions to see an independent Kingdom of Cambodia but belayed it with the specific UN Clause. A man of mere 24, he saw himself head of the country as he waited for this “trusteeship” to come through.

Cambodia was already readjusting as they had been granted extensive autonomy under the French Union but, full independence was quite a “step up.” The first thing that the King had drafted was clauses which provided for an elected parliament on the basis of universal mall suffrage as well as full press-freedoms, soon to sign into practice next year.

He was assigned with Prime Minister Sisowath Monireth who both worked on a promise of integration of the Khmer Issarak within the Cambodian Government as well as the creation of a first modern Cambodian Army. Offering extensive pay for French soldiers who wished to stay, the Prime Minister promised to uphold the sovereignty to the King, to preserve internal security and to defend the frontiers of the country.

Immediately, a map of Cambodia had been drafted and within it, it incorporated territory that had still been occupied by Thailand. The Phnom Penh Government issued an immediate demand that the Thai Military and Government withdraw from this territory. On the same date, the first drafting of an independent Cambodian Constitution began. It was with this, Cambodia had seemed the most peaceful out of the three nations - and so it was.

Laos

Much alike in Cambodia, King Sisavang Phoulivong of Laos heard the news concerning not only the recognized independence but also the formal declaration of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam. With the French simultaneously leaving and ordering the arrest of the High Commissioner who, just days ago had sent him an offer of cooperation under the “Indochinese Federation”, (“Union” or whatever it was!) he instead completely ignored this.

It was here on March 15th, 1946 that King Sisavang Vong restored the Kingdom of Laos, declaring quasi-independence while accepting the position under the United Nations Trusteeship. For the first time in 250 years, a Lao Monarch rested under the entire region of Laos. His nephews, Souvanna Phouma and Souphanouvong, both members of the Lao Issara, protested his rule in various ways.

Prince Souvanna Phouma, King Phoulivong’s Nephew, had declared the Luang Prabang Government upon his own return. In this, he declared his older brother, Phetsarath Ratanavongsa as the Head of State (the same Prince who had already been under power in the Lao Issara, effectively the Government in Exile). A proud and open member of the Lao Issara, the two brothers along with their third, Prince Souphanouvong, had openly protested their uncle’s leadership. It was here that the brothers divided the territories of Laos among themselves, each hoping to unite the region into one greater Laotian State, banded against King Phoulivong in promise to restore order back to their fledgling nation.

At the same time, the Lao Issara’s volunteers of the Viet-Minh were slowly returning day by day. Prince Souphanouvong took the Communist elements and marched North of Luang Prabang, Souvanna Phouma took the Southern territories while Phetsarath Ratanavongsa played his part as Head of State of Laos. He took control over Luang Prabang and the Central Territories. Each of them had favors in varying lines of society, Souphanouvong (nicknamed the Red Prince) had communist and leftist loyalties, Phouma held centre-left and right loyalties while Ratanavongsa held the right and more conservative ideals of Laotian Society.

The country was left divided - both sides were preparing for a civil war.

• Vietnam is in a Civil War, Catholic Uprisings, Trotskyist Uprisings and an independent state to the Far South. The French Far-East Expeditionary Corps has practically disappeared overnight.

• Viet-Minh Coalitions are disbanding, seeing as their goals complete.

• VNQDD are recruiting along the Red River Delta and along the Chinese Border

• Laos is preparing for a Civil War with two governments claiming legitimacy

• Cambodia is the most calm out of the three but demands Thailand leave their territory.

Credit to /u/RubbishBailey for arresting D'Argenlieu and for Laos/Cambodia