Japan and Vietnam's Caodaists: A Wartime Relationship (1939–45)
The study describes an asymmetric relationship between Vietnamese Caodaists, followers of the Cao Dai religion, and the Japanese during World War Two. The Caodaists maintained a pro-Japanese stance throughout the occupation, based on their judgement that they could in this way advance the nationalist cause and achieve independence from French rule. The position of the Caodaists immediately after the end of World War Two was adversely affected as a result of their wartime collaboration.
Caodaism in Times of War: Spirits of Struggle and Struggle of Spirits
Caodaism is an indigenous and syncretistic religion of Vietnam that appeared in the 1920s, during the French colonial period. Caodaists believe that they have the responsibility to save humanity through spirit-mediumship and conversion before the impending end of the world. Their theology thus clearly intersects with politics: Cao Đài texts encouraged Vietnamese nationalism and endorsed the overthrow of French colonial rule. Between 1940 and 1965, Caodaist leaders made a range of strategic choices during wartime: armed struggle, collaboration, alliance and, finally, diplomacy. The biographies of three important Caodaist leaders highlight the diversity of their alliances, disagreements and conflicts, while making clear that all three shared the ultimate and unifying purpose of transforming Caodaism into the “national religion” of Vietnam.
Government Famine Relief in Bengal, 1943
An estimated seven and a half million people died of starvation and related diseases in China, Vietnam, and India during the last half of the Second World War. This death toll reflected the severity with which the poor were affected by the combination of natural disaster, military imperative, political conflict, economic dislocation, and corruption that caused these famines. But famine mortality is also a function of the effectiveness of the relief system. The famines in China and, to a lesser extent, Vietnam, occurred in times of administrative disruption. During the Bengal famine of 1943, however, the central and provincial administrations were intact, if under strain, as the Japanese army tested the eastern defenses of India. Moreover, the Bengal government had recently revised the instructions for bringing relief to those affected by famine. The possibility of an ordered administrative response to the crisis means that the analysis of this operation provides an opportunity to make a contribution to the general understanding of famine relief.