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National Geographic : 1974 Jan
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Misted in the half-light of secrecy, the airfield at Long Tieng (left) served as field headquarters for the rescue of U. S. pilots downed over North Viet Nam. It was also a secret base for CIA-Hmong operations in northern Laos. Maj. Gen. Vang Pao (above) led the Hmong guerrilla army that proved to be one of the few combat units with any success in the losing campaign against the Pathet Lao. He once tried, without success, to proclaim an independent Hmong nation - anthem, flag, and all. War leader or warlord? Patriot or puppet? No one label fits Vang Pao. He tours a refugee village with wives number six, five, and one. All are Hmong women who have adopted Laotian dress. "War is difficult; peace is hell," laments General Vang Pao, who must turn now from the battlefield to the booby traps of politics. Out soliciting support from his potential constituents in a Lao Theung village (above), he drinks rice wine from a communal crock. The Hmong of Laos: No Place to Run
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