View source for Vang Pao

{{short description|Laotian American soldier and community leader}}
{{Family name hatnote|lang=Hmong|Vang}}
{{use dmy dates|date=September 2021}}
{{Infobox military person
| image         = Vang-pao.jpg
| caption       = Vang in 2004
| name          = Vang Pao
| native_name   = Vaj Pov
| birth_date    = 8 December 1929
| death_date    = {{Death date and age|2011|1|6|1929|12|8|df=yes}}
| birth_place   = [[Nonghet]], [[Xiangkhouang Province|Xiangkhouang]], [[French Indochina]]
| death_place   = [[Clovis, California]], U.S.
| allegiance    = {{ubl|{{flag|French Indochina}}|{{flag|Kingdom of Laos}}|{{flag|United States|name=United States of America}} }}
| serviceyears  = ?&ndash;1975
| rank          = [[Major general]]{{sfnp|Tucker|2011|page=1227}}{{sfnp|Yia Lee|Tapp|2010|page=26}}<br/>[[File:Royal Lao Army OF-7 - Phoun Trïï (1955-1975).gif|57x55px]]
| branch        = {{ubl|{{army|France}}|{{Flagicon image|Flag of Laos (1952–1975).svg|25px}} [[Royal Lao Army]]{{sfnp|Nguyen|2012|page=110}} }}
| commands      = {{ubl|[[Groupement de Commandos Mixtes Aéroportés|GCMA Laos]]|[[Laotian Civil War|"Secret Army"]] }} [[Commando Raiders]] (Military Region 2) 
[[Royal Lao Armed Forces]] (Military Region 2)
| battles       = {{ubl|[[Second Sino-Japanese War]]|[[First Indochina War]]|[[Laotian Civil War]]|[[Second Indochina War]]}}
| module        = {{Infobox person
  |embed = yes
  |nationality = [[Hmong people|Hmong]], [[Kingdom of Laos|Laotian]]
  }}
}}

'''Vang Pao''' ([[Romanized Popular Alphabet|RPA]]: ''Vaj Pov'' {{IPA|Hmn|vâ pɔ̌|}}, [[Laotian language|Lao]]: ວັງປາວ; 8 December 1929 &ndash; 6 January 2011)<ref name="W&P">{{cite news|author=Stephen Magagnini|title=Legendary Hmong Gen. Vang Pao led his people in war, peace |newspaper=Sacramento Bee}}</ref> was a [[major general]] in the [[Royal Lao Army]]{{sfnp|Castle|1995|page=184}} and later a leader of the [[Hmong American]] community in the United States.<ref name="nyt obit">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/08/world/asia/08vangpao.html|work=The New York Times|first=Douglas|last=Martin|title=Vang Pao, Laotian General Who Aided U.S., Dies at 81|date=8 January 2011}}</ref>{{sfnp|Lee|Nadeau|2011|page=435}}

==Early life==
Vang, an ethnic Hmong, was born on 8 December 1929,<ref>{{cite news|url=http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=FB&p_theme=fb&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EAE887C2383BF87&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM|title=Revered Hmong leader Vang Pao stands tall in two worlds...|date=1 January 1995|archive-date=24 October 2012|access-date=12 February 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121024214717/http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=FB&p_theme=fb&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EAE887C2383BF87&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="nyt obit"/> in the Hmong village [[Nong Het|Nonghet]],<ref>[http://www.wpt.org/hmong/bios.html Profile on] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110218042220/http://www.wpt.org/hmong/bios.html |date=2011-02-18 }}, [[Wisconsin Public Television]]. Retrieved 19 September 2010.</ref> located in Central [[Xiangkhuang Province]], in the northeastern region of [[Laos]], where his father, Neng Chu Vang, was a county leader.

Vang began his early life as a farmer until [[Empire of Japan|Japanese]] forces invaded and occupied [[French Indochina]] in [[World War II]]. His father sent him away to school from the age of 10 to 15<ref name="W&P"/> before he launched his military career, joining the [[French Military|French military]] to protect fellow Hmong during the Japanese invasion.<ref name="W&P"/><ref name="guard obit"/>

While taking an entrance examination, the captain who was the proctor realized that Vang knew almost no written French. The captain dictated the answers to Vang so he could join the army. [[Anne Fadiman]], author of ''[[The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down]]'', said Vang did not express any embarrassment over this cheating. Fadiman added "it is worth noting that in this incident, far from tarnishing Vang Pao's reputation — as, for example [[Ted Kennedy]]'s fudged [[Spanish language|Spanish]] exam at [[Harvard University]] tarnished his — merely added to his mythology: this was the sort of man who could never be held back by such petty impediments as rules."<ref name="Fadiman">{{cite book |last1=Fadiman |first1=Anne |title=The spirit catches you and you fall down: A Hmong child, her American doctors, and the collision of two cultures |date=1997 |publisher=Farrar, Straus and Giroux |location=New York |isbn=978-0-374-26781-0|page=129 |edition=First |author-link=Anne Fadiman|title-link=The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down }}</ref>

==Military career==
{{Further|topic=covert war in Laos|Laotian Civil War}}
[[File:LaosTraining.jpg|thumb|[[Programs Evaluation Office]] (PEO) adviser Jack F. Mathews with then Major Vang Pao, commander of the ''10éme Bataillon de Infanterie (10 BI)'', at [[Nong Net]], July 1960.]]

The term "Mèo Maquis" was originally used by [[Free French]] and [[Allies of World War II|Allied]] intelligence officers to describe the Hmong resistance forces working against Japanese forces occupying [[Indochina]] and [[China]] during World War II. The name was in reference to the [[Maquis (World War II)|Maquis]] resistance in France,<ref>{{Cite news|last=Burke |agency=Associated Press|first=Garance|date=2011-01-07|title=The life of General Vang Pao, Hmong guerrilla leader|work=Christian Science Monitor|url=https://www.csmonitor.com/World/Latest-News-Wires/2011/0107/The-life-of-General-Vang-Pao-Hmong-guerrilla-leader|access-date=2021-09-09|issn=0882-7729}}</ref> with [[Miao people#Nomenclature: Miao or Hmong|''Mèo'']] being the then-current [[exonym]] for the Hmong. After World War II, French [[Groupement de Commandos Mixtes Aéroportés]] (GCMA) authorities recruited Vang as a lieutenant during the [[First Indochina War]] to combat the [[Viet Minh]].{{sfnp|Hamilton-Merritt|1993|pages=54–59}}<ref>{{YouTube|oVBWCVA0Hvc|Le colonel Sassi (1954) Guerre d'Indochine}}, {{In lang|fr}}. Col. [[Jean Sassi]].</ref>

He was the only ethnic Hmong to attain the rank of General officer in the [[Royal Lao Army]], and he was loyal to the [[King of Laos]] while remaining a champion of the [[Hmong people]]. During the 1960s/70s, he commanded the [[Laotian Civil War|Secret Army]], also known as the Hmong Army, a highly effective [[Central Intelligence Agency]]-trained and supported force that fought against the [[Pathet Lao]] and [[People's Army of Vietnam]].<ref>{{cite news |title=The Montagnard Moses |date=13 January 2011 |page=46 |newspaper=[[The Economist]]  |url=https://www.economist.com/asia/2011/01/13/the-montagnard-moses  |archive-date=27 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230727181747/https://www.economist.com/asia/2011/01/13/the-montagnard-moses}}</ref> Vang's ethnic Hmong and Laotian veterans and their refugee families who served in the U.S. "Secret Army" were eventually granted the status of political refugees by the [[United Nations]] because of alleged persecution by the Lao [[Marxist]] government and [[communist]] Vietnam who took control in 1975. The Lao and Hmong refugees were allowed to resettle in the United States, France, [[Australia]], [[New Zealand]], and elsewhere. Many of Vang's former veterans formed the [[Lao Veterans of America]], Inc. and the Lao Veterans of America Institute, with offices in [[Fresno, California]], [[Washington, D.C.]] and other locales.<ref>[http://www.laoveteransofamerica.org Lao Veterans of America, Inc.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161227015927/http://www.laoveteransofamerica.org/ |date=2016-12-27 }}, retrieved 3 January 2009.</ref>

==Immigration to the United States==
Vang emigrated to the United States after the communists seized power in Laos in 1975. He and his wife, [[May Song Vang]], whom he married in 1973, initially moved to [[Montana]] before settling in California.<ref name=fbee>{{cite news|title=May Song Vang, widow of Gen. Vang Pao, dies at 62|url=http://www.fresnobee.com/2013/08/06/3427620/widow-of-gen-vang-pao-dies.html|work=[[Fresno Bee]]|date=2013-08-06|access-date=2013-09-03|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130901213533/http://www.fresnobee.com/2013/08/06/3427620/widow-of-gen-vang-pao-dies.html|archive-date=2013-09-01}}</ref> He remained widely respected by his fellow Hmong and was an esteemed elder of the American Hmong people, many of whom experienced the war or [[Conflict in Laos involving the Hmong|the reprisals that]] followed.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Olson|first=Dan|date=January 6, 2011|title=Hmong community, military leader Vang Pao dies at 81|url=https://www.mprnews.org/story/2011/01/06/vang-pao-dies-hmong-laos|access-date=2021-09-09|work=MPR News}}</ref> Though he was less influential among younger Hmong-Americans who had primarily grown up in the United States, he was considered an influential leader of U.S. Hmong community, enjoying great loyalty for his position of leadership and respect for his military accomplishments.<ref>{{Cite news|first1=Toni|last1=Randolph|first2=Greta |last2=Cunningham |title=Hmong community reacts with alarm to charges against Vang Pao|date=5 June 2007|access-date=10 June 2007|url=http://minnesota.publicradio.org/display/web/2007/06/05/vangpao|work=[[Minnesota Public Radio]]}}</ref>

While in exile, Vang assembled other Lao and Hmong leaders from around the world to create the [[United Lao National Liberation Front]] (ULNF), also known as the Lao National Liberation Movement or simply the Neo Hom, to bring attention to atrocities happening in Laos and to support the political and military resistance to the government of the [[Lao People's Democratic Republic]].{{sfnp|Hamilton-Merritt|1993|page=427}} He was one of the eight founders of the organization in 1981, along with Prince [[Sisouk na Champassak]], General [[Phoumi Nosavan]] and General [[Kouprasith Abhay]].<ref name="BtPA">{{cite book |last=Vang |first=Nengher N. |editor1=Geoffrey W. Jensen|editor2=Matthew M. Stith |title=Beyond the Quagmire: New Interpretations of the Vietnam War |date=15 March 2019 |publisher=University of North Texas Press |isbn=978-1-57441-758-6 |pages=47–82 |chapter=Beyond the Peace Accords: Legacies of America’s Secret War in Laos }}</ref>{{rp|57}}

Thousands of Vang's former ethnic Laotian and Hmong veterans, and their refugee families, in the United States also formed the non-profit veterans and advocacy organizations the Lao Veterans of America and the Lao Veterans of America Institute. In the late 1980s and 1990s, Vang, aided by his adviser, Philip Smith, and influential American diplomatic allies, Members of Congress, and vast numbers of Hmong-Americans, helped halt the forced [[United Nations]]-sponsored repatriation back to Laos of thousands of Laotian and Hmong refugees in [[Thailand]]. It was a major human rights victory for the Hmong and Lao community and non-profit advocacy organizations who urged an end to forced repatriation, including the [[Center for Public Policy Analysis]] (CPPA) and the [[Lao Veterans of America]].<ref>{{multiref2
| 1 = {{Cite news |last=Kaufman |first= Marc |date=8 April 1996 |url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-18164641.html |title=Hmong refugees will now be allowed to enter the U.S.|id=(Originated from Knight-Ridder Newspapers) |work= Tribune News Service|via=HighBeam Research |access-date=21 November 2014 |archive-date=29 March 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150329050341/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-18164641.html |url-status=dead }}
| 2 = {{Cite news| last=Washington |first=Wayne |work=Minneapolis Star Tribune |date=17 April 1996 |url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-62628182.html |title=Agencies say influx of Hmong will go smoothly |via=HighBeam Research |access-date=21 November 2014 |archive-date=29 March 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150329051907/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-62628182.html |url-status=dead }}
| 3 = {{Cite news |date=18 April 1996 |url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-69595349.html |title=New wave of Laotian refugees on the way, hundreds expected to come to state |work=[[The Capital Times]] |via=HighBeam Research |access-date=21 November 2014 |archive-date=29 March 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150329051908/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-69595349.html |url-status=dead }}
| 4 = Barber, Ben, Washington Times (Washington, D.C.) (22 April 1996) [https://www.questia.com/read/1G1-56867976 "3,500 Laotians Head for U.S. after 20 Years in Thailand"]{{dead link|date=July 2021}}
}}</ref>

Throughout Vang's residence in the U.S., the Hmong leader diplomatically opposed human rights violations by the communist government of Laos against the Hmong and Laotian people. He was invited to speak at the U.S. Congressional Forum on Laos, with Members of Congress, about the persecution of the Laotian and Hmong people on several occasions in the U.S. Congress from 1999 to 2003.<ref>[http://www.centerforpublicpolicyanalysis.org Center for Public Policy Analysis] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080406154059/http://www.centerforpublicpolicyanalysis.org/ |date=6 April 2008 }}; accessed 6 May 1999.</ref>

From 1993 to 2003, Vang relied on Philip Smith for much of his efforts with policymakers in Washington, D.C. and the U.S. Congress. Smith was a long-time friend of Vang Pao and many Laotian and Hmong American community leaders.<ref>''New York Sun'' (21 September 2009)"Vang Pao Escapes" http://www.nysun.com/editorials/vang-pao-escapes/86878 {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131105033323/http://www.nysun.com/editorials/vang-pao-escapes/86878 |date=5 November 2013 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |author1=((Center for Public Policy Analysis)) |title=Vietnam, Laos Nationalist Fighter Honored By Lao Hmong |url=https://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO1102/S00609/vietnam-laos-nationalist-fighter-honored-by-lao-hmong.htm |work= Scoop News NZ |date=17 February 2011}}</ref> Over time, Smith was instrumental in helping Vang to meet with key Members of Congress and senior Administration officials as well as helping to organize Congressional hearings, briefings and research missions to South East Asia.<ref>''The Olympian'', McClatchy News (11 January 2011) [http://www.theolympian.com/2007/06/05/1502667/suspect-in-alleged-laos-plot-had.html "Suspect in alleged Laos plot had friends, influence on Capitol Hill"]</ref><ref>Associated Press ''USA Today'' (17 July 2007) [http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/topstories/2007-07-17-1201509033_x.htm "Hmong supporters criticize indictments"]</ref> (Smith, a foreign policy, human rights and legislative affairs specialist, serves as the executive director of the Center for Public Policy Analysis.)

In March 2011, following Vang Pao's death, Smith wrote an editorial critical of the decision to not allow him to be interred in [[Arlington National Cemetery]]. Smith persisted in his efforts and the CPPA, along with the Lao Veterans of America, helped organize national veterans ceremonies in May 2011 to officially honor Vang Pao at Arlington National Cemetery.<ref name="startribune.com">[http://www.startribune.com/opinion/commentaries/117551498.html "Vang Pao burial decision is a disgrace"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131019080623/http://www.startribune.com/opinion/commentaries/117551498.html |date=19 October 2013 }}. ''Minneapolis Star Tribune''. 7 March 2011.</ref><ref name="snub"/>

In late November 2003 and early 2004, Vang shocked many of his closest advisers and supporters, and began to mysteriously, and abruptly, reverse his previous position in opposition to U.S. economic sanctions against the communist government of Laos.<ref name="star trib covert series">"The Covert War of Vang Pao" series from the ''Minneapolis Star Tribune'': {{multiref|1={{cite news |last1=Kennedy |first1=Tony |last2=McEnroe |first2=Paul |date=July 2005 |title=The FBI and authorities put Pao's son Cha Vang under investigation |work=Minneapolis Star Tribune |url=https://soc.culture.laos.narkive.com/08QW6PzE/fbi-is-told-of-75-000-bribe-figure# |others=Contribution by Curt Brown |via=Newsgroup Archive |id=Republished version of full text |series=The Covert War of Vang Pao }}|2={{cite news |last1=Kennedy |first1=Tony |last2=McEnroe |first2=Paul |date=4 July 2005 |title=Reality gets in the way of loyalty to former general Vang Pao |url=https://soc.culture.laos.narkive.com/lSF0UyFc/reality-gets-in-the-way-of-loyalty-to-general-former-vang-pao |work=Minneapolis Star Tribune |via=Newsgroup Archive |id=Republished version of full text |series=The Covert War of Vang Pao: Part 2 of 3 |access-date=29 October 2023 |archive-date=11 November 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131111045351/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-133785443.html |url-status=dead }} [Extract of Part 2] |3={{cite news |last1=Kennedy |first1=Tony |last2=McEnroe |first2=Paul |date=5 July 2005 |title=Ex-guerrilla's gamble for peace backfires |url=https://soc.culture.laos.narkive.com/zW6g8sFw/vang-pao-s-era-is-ended |work=Minneapolis Star Tribune |via=Newsgroup Archive |id=Republished version of full text |series=The Covert War of Vang Pao: Part 3 of 3 }}}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Lovering |first=Daniel | agency=Associated Press |date=13 January 2014 |url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P1-89481454.html |title=Former enemies wage battle over U.S. Trade with Laos |work=AP Worldstream|via= HighBeam Research |access-date=21 November 2014 |archive-date=29 March 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150329050335/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P1-89481454.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> Vang, in close cooperation with one of his highly controversial sons, Cha Vang, reversed his long-standing position and began to publicly advocate normalization of U.S.-Laotian trade relations with Laos in a highly controversial move that involved secret meetings with communist Vietnamese military and political officials and complex and questionable financial dealings involving Cha Vang and others.<ref name="star trib covert series"/> This created suspicion and distrust among many of Pao's supporters and advisers who quickly began to abandon Vang Pao and his new direction in support of the Lao government's foreign policy, economic and military agenda.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Baenen |first=Jeff |agency=Associated Press |date=28 May 2004 |title=Hmong Military Leader's Influence Waning |url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P1-95001293.html |work= AP Online|via= HighBeam Research |access-date=21 November 2014 |archive-date=29 March 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150329051849/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P1-95001293.html |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |author1= Heron Marquez Estrada |author2=Chao Xiong|date=2 May 2004 |url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-116193843.html |title=Attacks on Hmong a puzzle; the roots of recent violence aimed at a general's affiliates are being probed |work=Minneapolis Star Tribune |via=HighBeam Research |access-date=21 November 2014 |archive-date=29 March 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150329051851/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-116193843.html |url-status=dead }} [Extract]</ref> The Lao Marxist government, and hardline Pathet Lao elements in the Lao military and government, backed by the military in [[Vietnam]], continued to engage in military attacks and human rights violations against the Hmong in Laos.<ref>{{Cite news|agency=Associated Press |date=3 April 2004 |title=Hmong Tribesmen Seek Resettlement in Laos |url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P1-91813746.html |access-date=9 August 2013 |archive-date=11 November 2013 |work= AP Online |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131111045342/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P1-91813746.html |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite news|agency=Associated Press|date=5 April 2004 |title=Amnesty Urges Laos to Treat Hmong Humanely |url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P1-91838427.html |via= HighBeam Research |access-date=9 August 2013 |archive-date=11 November 2013 |work= AP Online |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131111045346/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P1-91838427.html |url-status=dead }}[Extract]</ref><ref>{{Cite news |agency=Associated Press |date=26 March 2004|title=U.S. Secretary of State says he will talk to U.N. chief about Hmong in Laos |work= AP Online |via= HighBeam Research |access-date=9 August 2013 |url= http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P1-92679049.html |archive-date=11 November 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131111045400/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P1-92679049.html |url-status=dead}} [Extract]</ref>

Many of Vang's former veterans and their families, whose relatives were still being persecuted and killed in Laos, opposed Vang's change of stance on the issue of Normalized Trade Relations (NTR), or Most Favored Nation Trade Status (MFN), with Laos. This included the Lao Veterans of America, the Center for Public Policy Analysis and others. Following Pao's meeting with communist generals and officials from Vietnam, Vang's so-called "New Doctrine" was widely opposed by many of his closest advisers, family, supporters, and former veterans, and many in the Lao and Hmong-American community.<ref name="star trib covert series"/><ref>{{Cite news |last=Her |first=Lucy |date=28 November 2003 |url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-110671550.html |title=McCollum praises policy shift by Hmong general Vang Pao |work=Minneapolis Star Tribune |via=HighBeam Research |access-date=21 November 2014 |archive-date=29 March 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150329050337/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-110671550.html |url-status=dead }} [Extract]</ref> By 2004–05, independent journalists investigating complex financial relations, ethics probes, and scandals surrounding '''Cha Vang''' and various lawsuits. 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. The ''[[Minnesota Star Tribune]]'' and ''[[St. Paul Pioneer Press]]'' reported extensively on these matters.<ref>{{cite news|last= McEnroe|first= Paul |work=Minneapolis Star Tribune |date=11 June 2005|url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-133202775.html |id=Extract |title=VANG PAO FOUNDATION: Chamber says money was for trade missions|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20131111045356/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-133202775.html |archive-date= 11 November 2013 }}</ref><ref name="star trib covert series"/>

The Vang Pao Foundation was forced to close following investigation by authorities and a lawsuit by the attorney general of Minnesota.<ref>{{multiref2|1=McEnroe, Paul; Kennedy, Tony, ''Minneapolis Star Tribune'' (20 April 2005) [https://web.archive.org/web/20131111045354/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-131793961.html "Hatch is suing Hmong foundation; Attorney general wants to close the Vang Pao Foundation, which he says has ignored Minnesota charities laws."]|2= McEnroe, Paul; Kennedy, Tony, ''Minneapolis Star Tribune'' (October 2005) "Hmong nonprofit must close; A settlement with Attorney General Mike Hatch shuts the door on the Vang Pao Foundation, which violated nonprofit laws"|3=McEnroe, Paul,'' Minneapolis Star Tribune'' (28 May 2005) [https://web.archive.org/web/20131111045358/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-132888251.html "State questions foundation checks; The St. Paul Area Chamber of Commerce paid more than $63,000 to the Vang Pao Foundation in 2001."]|4=McEnroe, Paul & Brown, Curt (27 February 2005) [https://web.archive.org/web/20131111045337/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-132505509.html "Hmong project worried some from start; Mayor Randy Kelly's advisers fretted about the Vang Pao Foundation's ability to raise funds to build a funeral home, and about political fallout."]|5={{cite news |last1=Kennedy |first1=Tony |last2=McEnroe |first2=Paul |date=4 July 2005 |title=Reality gets in the way of loyalty to former general Vang Pao |url=https://soc.culture.laos.narkive.com/lSF0UyFc/reality-gets-in-the-way-of-loyalty-to-general-former-vang-pao |work=Minneapolis Star Tribune |via=Newsgroup Archive |id=Republished version of full text |series=The Covert War of Vang Pao: Part 2 of 3 |access-date=29 October 2023 |archive-date=11 November 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131111045351/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-133785443.html |url-status=dead }} [Extract]}}</ref>

Thailand-based Laotian and Hmong refugees, many of whom had been living at formal and informal refugee camps including [[Wat Tham Krabok]], a [[Buddhist]] temple in Thailand, were afforded the right to avoid the forced return to Laos and instead over 15,000 were offered relocation rights and assistance to the U.S. in 2004 and 2005.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.centerforpublicpolicyanalysis.org/ |title=Center for Public Policy Analysis (CPPA) |access-date=10 July 2013 |archive-date=6 April 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080406154059/http://www.centerforpublicpolicyanalysis.org/ |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Baird |first=Ian G. |chapter=The monks and the Hmong: The special relationship between the Chao Fa and the Tham Krabok Buddhist Temple in Saraburi Province, Thailand |doi=10.4324/9780203111024 |editor1=Vladimir Tikhonov |editor2=Torkel Brekke |title= Buddhism and Violence: Militarism and Buddhism in Modern Asia |edition=first |date=2012 |publisher=Routledge |pages=120–151 |isbn=9780203111024}}</ref><ref name="guard obit">{{cite news |last1=Fawthrop |first1=Tom |title=Vang Pao obituary |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/feb/22/vang-pao-obituary |work=The Guardian |date=22 February 2011}}</ref>

==Coup d'état conspiracy==
{{Main|2007 Laotian coup d'état conspiracy allegation}}

On 4 June 2007, following a lengthy federal investigation labeled "Operation Tarnished Eagle", warrants were issued by U.S. federal courts ordering the arrest of Vang Pao and nine others for allegedly plotting to overthrow the Pathet Lao communist government of Laos, in violation of the federal [[Neutrality Act of 1794|Neutrality Acts]]. Following the issuance of the warrants, an estimated 250 federal agents representing numerous U.S. federal law enforcement and other agencies conducted simultaneous raids on homes, offices and other locations throughout central and southern [[California]], arresting Vang and nine other individuals.<ref>[http://www.cnn.com/2007/LAW/06/04/laos.arrests/index.html "Ten Charged with Alleged Laos Plot"], CNN, 4 June 2007.</ref> The federal charges alleged that members of the group inspected weapons, including [[AK-47]]s, smoke grenades, and Stinger missiles, with the intent of purchasing them and smuggling them into Thailand, where they allegedly would be shipped to anti-Laotian governmental [[resistance movement]] forces inside Laos. The one non-Hmong person among the nine arrested, Harrison Jack, a 1968 [[United States Military Academy|West Point]] graduate and retired Army infantry officer, allegedly attempted to recruit [[Special Operations]] veterans to act as mercenaries in an invasion of Laos.<ref>{{cite news|first=Denny |last=Walsh |title=Ten accused of conspiring to oust government of Laos |url=http://www.sacbee.com/292/story/206120.html |work=[[Sacramento Bee]] |date=5 June 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071013143724/http://sacbee.com/292/story/206120.html |archive-date=13 October 2007 |url-status=dead |df=mdy }}</ref>

On 15 June 2007, defendants were indicted by a grand jury and an 11th man was arrested in connection with the alleged plot. The defendants faced possible life terms for violation of the U.S. Neutrality Act and various weapons charges. Vang and the other Hmong were initially denied bail by the California federal court, which cited each of them as a flight risk. Since the 4 June 2007 federal raid, the arrests became the subject of mounting criticism. His fellow friends, including Hmong, Mienh, Lao, Vietnamese, and Americans individuals who knew Vang protested the arrests, rallying in California, Minnesota, Michigan, North Carolina and Wisconsin. Several of Vang's high-level U.S. supporters criticized the California court that issued the arrest warrants. In 2009 all of the federal charges against Vang Pao were dropped.<ref name="20090919-nytimes">[https://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/19/us/19general.html U.S. Drops Case Against Exiled Hmong Leader", ''The New York Times'', 18 September 2009.]</ref>

Prior to his arrest, Vang was scheduled to have an elementary school in [[Madison, Wisconsin]] named after him, a proposal that met with opposition over historian [[Alfred W. McCoy]]'s allegations that Vang had been involved in war crimes and drug trafficking,<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.channel3000.com/news/13274145/detail.html|title=Parents Pack Meeting To Object To New School's Name|work=Channel3000 News|access-date=7 January 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110113212827/http://www.channel3000.com/news/13274145/detail.html|archive-date=13 January 2011}}</ref> with Hmong scholars [[Gary Yia Lee]]<ref>{{cite news |last1=Eisen |first1=Marc |date=April 19, 2007 |title=McCoy challenged on Vang Pao; he fires back |url=https://isthmus.com/news/news/mccoy-challenged-on-vang-pao-he-fires-back/ |work=Isthmus |location=Madison, Wisconsin |publisher=Isthmus Community Media, Inc. |access-date=January 9, 2023}}</ref> and [[Jane Hamilton-Merritt]], as well as former [[Air America (airline)|Air America Association]] president Jack Knott, strongly disputing his claims.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Schneider |first1=Pat |date=April 27, 2002 |title=Sen. George Asks UW For Probe On Vang Pao |url=http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n809/a09.html |work=The Capital Times |location=Madison, Wisconsin |access-date=January 7, 2011 |via=Mapinc.org}}</ref> Pao's June 2007 arrest later led the Madison School to reopen discussion on the school's naming.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.channel3000.com/news/13453638/detail.html|title=Board To Revisit New School's Name After Hmong General's Arrest|work=Channel3000 News|access-date=7 January 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110113212831/http://www.channel3000.com/news/13453638/detail.html|archive-date=13 January 2011}}</ref> On 18 June 2007, the Madison Metropolitan School District Board of Education voted to drop Vang's name from the new school, in light of the federal charges against him and the previous allegations.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.channel3000.com/news/13524823/detail.html|title=School Board Drops New School's Name, OKs Teacher Contract|work=Channel3000 News|access-date=7 January 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110522042127/http://www.channel3000.com/news/13524823/detail.html|archive-date=22 May 2011}}</ref> Nonetheless, in 2012 another school district, the [[Fresno Unified School District]], voted unanimously to name a new elementary school after him the year after his passing.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://kmph.com/archive/general-vang-pao-elementary-school-a-first-for-fresno|title=General Vang Pao Elementary School: A First for Fresno|date=9 February 2012}}</ref>

===Release from jail===
On 12 July 2007, the California federal court ordered the release of the Hmong leader on a US$1.5 million bond secured by property owned by members of his family. 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.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://minnesota.publicradio.org/display/web/2007/07/13/vangpaoreleased|title=Pao released on bail|work=Minnesota Public Radio News|date=13 July 2007|access-date=7 January 2011}}</ref>

===Return to court===
On 9 March 2009, Vang's lawyers filed a motion seeking to dismiss the charges against him. His lawyers claimed that the charges were fabricated and had no bearing in court. Following this appearance, on 6 April 2009, federal prosecutors denied all allegations of fabrications in the motion. That following month, on 11 May 2009, Vang Pao returned to federal court in [[Sacramento, California]] with his lawyers to argue the motion. Judge Frank Damrell stated, after hearing the arguments for the motion, that there was insufficient evidence from the defense to justify a dismissal.<ref>{{cite news |title=CIA's Lao ally faces 'outrageous' charge |first=Nelson |last=Rand |url=https://asiatimes.com/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090511125259/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Southeast_Asia/KE08Ae01.html |archive-date=11 May 2009 |work=Asia Times |date=8 May 2009 }}</ref>

===Dropping of charges ===
On 18 September 2009, the federal government dropped all charges against Vang Pao, announcing in a release that the federal government was permitted to consider "the probable sentence or other consequences if the person is convicted."<ref name="20090919-nytimes"/> Vang Pao's long-time adviser and friend Philip Smith hailed the federal government's decision to drop the charges against Vang and the other accused Hmong-American defendants. Following Vang's arrest, Smith advocated in Washington, D.C. for the case to be dropped against Vang and other Hmong leaders. Smith raised repeated public concerns that the U.S. Justice Department and U.S. Department of States, would be putting themselves and the U.S. government on trial, for its betrayal and abandonment of the Hmong people during the conclusion of the Vietnam War and its aftermath when many Hmong were killed or imprisoned by the Lao communist government that prevailed in the conflict.<ref>''Los Angeles Times'' (19 September 2009) [https://articles.latimes.com/2009/sep/19/local/me-vang-pao19/2 "Federal charges dropped against Hmong leader Vang Pao: The exiled general was accused of plotting to overthrow the communist regime in Laos"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180914151253/http://articles.latimes.com/2009/sep/19/local/me-vang-pao19/2 |date=2018-09-14 }}</ref><ref>Associated Press/''USA TODAY'' (17 July 2007) [http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/topstories/2007-07-17-1201509033_x.htm "Hmong supporters criticize indictments"]</ref>

At special sessions of the U.S. Congressional Forum on Laos, Smith and the Center for Public Policy Analysis joined by Members of Congress, including U.S. Representative [[Dana Rohrabacher]], and others, called on the U.S. Department of Justice to immediately drop the case, and the charges, against General Vang and the other Hmong defendants, especially in light of the Lao government's and Lao Peoples Army's (LPA) ongoing military attacks and egregious human rights violations directed against many of the Laotian and Hmong people, which included attacks on unarmed civilians and political and religious dissidents, atrocities, rape, torture and the use of mass starvation.<ref>{{multiref2|1=U.S. Congressional Record, US GPO (27 October 2000) [http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CREC-2000-10-28/html/CREC-2000-10-28-pt1-PgE2004-3.htm "IMPORTANCE OF THE ONGOING U.S. CONGRESSIONAL FORUM ON LAOS..."]|2=Encyclopædia Britannica (1 January 2001) [http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/713517/Laos-Year-In-Review-2000 "Laos: Year in Review-2000"]|3=U.S. Congressional Record, U.S. Government Printing Office (24 October 2002) [http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CREC-2002-10-24/html/CREC-2002-10-24-pt1-PgE1958-2.htm "Statement of the Honorable Patrick Kennedy: US Congressional Forum on Laos"]|4=Amnesty International, (6 May 2006) [https://www.amnesty.org.au/news/comments/527 "Laos: Massacre of unarmed Hmong women and children"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160407230759/http://www.amnesty.org.au/news/comments/527/ |date=2016-04-07 }}}}</ref>

Amnesty International and other human rights organizations and experts testified about their research efforts, along with Members of Congress, including U.S. Congressman [[Patrick J. Kennedy]], U.S. Senator [[Norm Coleman]], at the special Congressional Forums on Laos held in the U.S. Congress and Library of Congress.<ref>{{multiref2|1=PRESSZOOM (2 January 2009), U.S. Congressional Forum on Laos, [http://presszoom.com/story_147295.html "Laos Regime Urged to Release Hakit Yang, Hmong Tortured in Vientiane Prison"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140527213008/http://presszoom.com/story_147295.html |date=27 May 2014 }}|2=U.S. Congressional Forum on Laos, U.S. Congress, Center For Public Policy Analysis, http://www.centerforpublicpolicyanalysis.org|3=Amnesty International (6 May 2006) [https://www.amnesty.org.au/news/comments/527 "Laos: Massacre of unarmed Hmong women and children"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160407230759/http://www.amnesty.org.au/news/comments/527/ |date=2016-04-07 }}|4=Doctors Without Borders, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) (1 May 2008) [http://www.doctorswithoutborders.org/publications/reports/2007/Hmong_Briefing.pdf "Fearing a Forced Return: The Situation of the Lao Hmong Refugees in Petchabun, Thailand"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121001172618/http://www.doctorswithoutborders.org/publications/reports/2007/Hmong_Briefing.pdf |date=1 October 2012 }}|5=Amnesty International, (23 March 2007) [https://www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/ASA26/003/2007 "Lao People's Democratic Republic: Hiding in the jungle - Hmong under threat"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141208112022/http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/ASA26/003/2007 |date=2014-12-08 }}}}</ref>

==Personal life==
Vang Pao reportedly had at least 25 children by several wives, and spoke [[English language|English]], [[French language|French]], and [[Hmong language|Hmong]] besides his native [[Lao language|Lao]], although in later years in interviews he did not seem to use the language as much anymore.<ref>{{cite news|author=Stephen Magagnini|url=http://www.sacbee.com/2009/07/19/2037372/hmong-worldwide-revere-the-general.html|title=Hmong worldwide revere 'the General'|work=The Sacramento Bee|access-date=19 July 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100226050205/http://www.sacbee.com/2009/07/19/2037372/hmong-worldwide-revere-the-general.html|archive-date=26 February 2010|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author=Joshua Kurlantzick|title=A Great Place to Have a War: America in Laos and the Birth of a Military CIA|page=6|date=2016}}</ref>
Diana Aguilera of the ''[[Fresno Bee]]'' wrote that May Song Vang, who was Vang Pao's wife at the time of his death, "became the face of the Hmong community" after Vang Pao died.<ref name=Aguilerahonor>Aguilera, Diana. "[http://www.fresnobee.com/2013/12/26/3685745/fresno-new-year-festivities-honor.html Fresno New Year festivities honor Hmong 'mother'] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140204205900/http://www.fresnobee.com/2013/12/26/3685745/fresno-new-year-festivities-honor.html |date=2014-02-04 }}." ''[[Fresno Bee]]''. December 26, 2013. Retrieved on February 8, 2014.</ref>

==Death==
Vang, who battled [[diabetes]] and heart disease, died at age 81 from [[pneumonia]] with cardiac complications on 6 January 2011, at Clovis Community Medical Center, in [[Clovis, California]].<ref name="W&P"/> He was admitted to the hospital on 26 December 2010, after attending [[Hmong New Year]] celebrations in [[Fresno, California|Fresno]]. A hospital spokesman said his family was at the hospital at the time of Vang's death.<ref>{{multiref2|1={{cite web|author=Stephen Magagnini|url=http://www.sacbee.com/2011/01/06/3303184/hmong-leader-vang-pao-in-critical.html|title=Hmong leader remains in critical condition|work=The Sacramento Bee|access-date=6 January 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110414061517/http://www.sacbee.com/2011/01/06/3303184/hmong-leader-vang-pao-in-critical.html|archive-date=14 April 2011|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}}|2={{cite web|last=Thurston|first=Michael|url=https://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gzCGpyvDYhqVVWMQaZb4_fmlMfQw?docId=CNG.15bd5dcd9923ec1ede1841c7911a83dc.491|title=AFP: Vietnam War 'secret army' chief dies in US hospital|access-date=7 January 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110110040719/http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gzCGpyvDYhqVVWMQaZb4_fmlMfQw?docId=CNG.15bd5dcd9923ec1ede1841c7911a83dc.491|archive-date=10 January 2011}}|3={{cite news|last=Rauhala|first=Emily|url=http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,2041218,00.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110110134719/http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,2041218,00.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=January 10, 2011|title=Vang Pao, Guerilla Fighter and Hmong Leader, Dead at 81|work=Time Magazine|date=7 January 2011|access-date=7 January 2011}}|4={{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-12133710|title=Laos general and Hmong leader Vang Pao dies in exile|work=BBC News|date=7 January 2011|access-date=7 January 2011}}}}</ref>

Traditional [[Hmong funeral]] services for Vang were scheduled to be held for six days, starting 4 February 2011, at the [[Fresno Convention Center]]. More than 10,000 Hmong mourned on the first day of the funeral. After several funeral days, it was estimated that over 40,000 attended during the service of his funeral<ref>{{cite web|author=Stephen Magagnini|url=http://www.sacbee.com/2011/02/05/3379032/thousands-mourn-gen-vang-pao-in.html|title=Thousands mourn Gen. Vang Pao in Fresno|work=The Sacramento Bee|access-date=5 February 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110209133856/http://www.sacbee.com/2011/02/05/3379032/thousands-mourn-gen-vang-pao-in.html|archive-date=9 February 2011|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}}</ref> A committee unanimously voted against a request to bury Vang Pao at [[Arlington National Cemetery]];<ref>{{cite web|author=Stephen Magagnini |url=http://www.sacbee.com/2011/02/04/3378302/vang-pao-denied-burial-at-arlington.html |title=Vang Pao denied burial at Arlington |work=The Sacramento Bee |access-date=4 February 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110207180522/http://www.sacbee.com/2011/02/04/3378302/vang-pao-denied-burial-at-arlington.html |archive-date=February 7, 2011 }}</ref> he was subsequently buried near Los Angeles at [[Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Glendale|Forest Lawn Cemetery]] in [[Glendale, California]].<ref>{{cite news|title=General Vang Pao buried at Forest Lawn|author=Gene Haagenson|url=https://abc30.com/archive/7947124/|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120707041405/http://abclocal.go.com/kfsn/story?section=news/local&id=7947124|url-status=live|archive-date=7 July 2012|newspaper=[[KFSN-TV]]|date=9 February 2011|access-date=29 February 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=General Vang Pao Buried in Glendale|url=http://www.kqed.org/a/kqednews/RN201102091204|newspaper=[[KQED-FM|KQED]]|access-date=29 February 2012|archive-date=31 March 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120331130314/http://www.kqed.org/a/kqednews/RN201102091204|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="snub"/>

==Legacy==
In March 2011, following Vang's death, the CPPA issued an editorial, published in the ''Minneapolis Star Tribune'', critical of the decision by the U.S. Secretary of the Army not permitting Vang's burial in Arlington National Cemetery.<ref name="startribune.com"/> Despite the U.S. Secretary of the Army's decision, the CPPA, along with the Lao Veterans of America Institute, [[Lao Veterans of America]], Inc. (LVA), and others helped to organize national veterans ceremonies at Arlington National Cemetery in May 2011 to honor Vang's contribution to U.S. national security efforts during the Vietnam War.<ref name="snub"/> The Lao Veterans of America, Philip Smith, the CPPA and other prominent figures also highlighted and lauded Vang Pao's contribution to U.S. national security interests during the Vietnam War.<ref>[http://www.thefreelibrary.com/California+funeral+planned+for+Hmong+general-a01612410970 "California funeral planned for Hmong general"]. ''AFP American Edition''. Agence France-Press (AFP). 9 January 2011. Via — The Free Library.{{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141129081307/http://www.thefreelibrary.com/California+funeral+planned+for+Hmong+general-a01612410970 |date=29 November 2014 }}</ref>

In May 2011, Vang's efforts during the Vietnam War were officially commemorated at memorial ceremonies in Arlington National Cemetery organized by the Lao Veterans of America Institute, LVA, the CPPA, the U.S. Department of Defense, U.S. Special Forces Association, and others.<ref name="snub">{{multiref2|1={{cite news|title=Vang Pao Gets Arlington Ceremony After Burial Snub |work= Military Daily News |url=http://www.military.com/news/article/vang-pao-gets-arlington-ceremony-after-burial-snub.html |agency= [[Agence France-Presse]]|date=13 May 2011 |access-date=29 February 2012}}|2=[http://news.asiaone.com/News/AsiaOne%2BNews/World/Story/A1Story20110513-278644.html "Vietnam vet to get US honors after burial snub"]. ''Asia One News''. Agence France-Press (AFP). 13 May 2011. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141206014719/http://news.asiaone.com/News/AsiaOne%2BNews/World/Story/A1Story20110513-278644.html |date=6 December 2014}}}}</ref> Participants at the special ceremony held at the [[Laos Memorial]] within Arlington National Cemetery included the CPPA, LVA, U.S. Department of Defense, U.S. Department of the Army, Members of the Congress, U.S. Special Forces Association, Counterparts Veterans Association and others. General Vang's son, Chong Vang, spoke at the ceremony along with Colonel Wangyee Vang, Philip Smith, Captain D.L. "Pappy Hicks", U.S. Special Forces Association, and others.<ref name="snub" /><ref>{{cite news|title=Arlington ceremony honors Gen. Vang Pao|author=Steve Magagnini|url=http://www.mercedsunstar.com/2011/05/13/1890038/arlington-ceremony-honors-gen.html|newspaper=Merced Sun-Star|date=13 May 2011|access-date=29 February 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120312102222/http://www.mercedsunstar.com/2011/05/13/1890038/arlington-ceremony-honors-gen.html|archive-date=12 March 2012|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}}</ref>

Vang's likeness is memorialized by numerous monuments across the United States, including statues at the San Joaquin County Fairground in [[Stockton, California]] and outside the City Council Chamber in [[Chico, California]].

==See also==
{{Portal|Laos|Biography|United States}}
*[[Lao Veterans of America]]
*[[Lao Human Rights Council]]
*[[The Center for Public Policy Analysis]]
*[[Battle of Lima Site 85]]
*[[Groupement de Commandos Mixtes Aéroportés]]
*[[History of the Hmong in Fresno, California]]
*[[Ban Phou Pheung Noi]]
*[[History of Laos since 1945]]
*[[Ho Chi Minh trail]]
*[[Laos Memorial]]
*[[Lee Lue]]
*[[North Vietnamese invasion of Laos]]
*[[Raven FACs]]

==References==
===Sources===
{{refbegin}}
* {{cite book| first=Walter J. |last=Boyne|title=Air Warfare: A-L|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FW_50wm8VnMC&pg=PA669|year=2002|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=978-1-57607-345-2}}
* {{cite book|last1=Castle|first1=Timothy Neil |title=At War in the Shadow of Vietnam: United States Military Aid to the Royal Lao Government, 1955&ndash;75|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_cxNrNbZgFsC&pg=PA184|date=1 March 1995|publisher=Columbia University Press|isbn=978-0-231-07977-8}}
* {{cite book |last1=Hamilton-Merritt |first1=Jane |title=Tragic mountains: The Hmong, the Americans, and the secret wars for Laos, 1942–1992 |date=1993 |publisher=Indiana University Press |location=Bloomington |isbn=9780253207562|url=https://archive.org/details/tragicmountainsh0000hami/page/n3/mode/ |url-access=registration}} {{ISBN|0-253-20756-8}}.
* {{cite book|first1=Jonathan H. X. |last1=Lee|first2=Kathleen M. |last2=Nadeau |title=Encyclopedia of Asian American Folklore and Folklife|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9BrfLWdeISoC&pg=PA435|date=2011|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=978-0-313-35066-5}}
* {{cite book|first=Lien-Hang T. |last=Nguyen|title=Hanoi's War: An International History of the War for Peace in Vietnam|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=od5ZwW9QuQsC&pg=RA1-PT110|date=15 July 2012|publisher=Univ of North Carolina Press|isbn=978-0-8078-8269-6}}
* {{cite book|first=Spencer C. |last=Tucker|title=The Encyclopedia of the Vietnam War: A Political, Social, and Military History|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qh5lffww-KsC&pg=PA1227|date=20 May 2011|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=978-1-85109-961-0}}
* {{cite book|first1=Gary |last1=Yia Lee|last2=Tapp |first2=Nicholas |title=Culture and Customs of the Hmong|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RZEFgIhfdJEC&pg=PR26|date=16 September 2010|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=978-0-313-34527-2}}
{{refend}}

===Citations===
{{Reflist|30em}}

==Further reading==
*Robert Curry (2004). ''Whispering Death'', "Tuag Nco Ntsoov": ... Our Journey with the Hmong in the Secret War for Laos; {{ISBN|0-595-31809-6}}
*[https://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/11/magazine/11pao-t.html General Vang Pao's Last War] ''New York Times Magazine'', 11 May 2008
*Dictionary of the modern politics of South-East Asia, Michael Leifer (2001) Taylor & Francis, {{ISBN|0-415-23875-7}}, p.&nbsp;287 (profile of Vang Pao)

==External links==
{{Wikinews category|Vang Pao}}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20170923005033/http://centreforpublicpolicyanalysis.org/ "Laos Hmong Refugee Crisis", Center for Public Policy Analysis, Washington, D.C.]
*[http://www.laoveterans.org Lao Veterans of America, Inc., Washington, D.C.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131020062620/http://www.laoveterans.org/ |date=2013-10-20 }}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20050113002227/http://www.time.com/time/asia/magazine/article/0,13673,501030505-447253,00.html "Welcome to the Jungle: Recruited by the CIA to be a Secret Army During the Vietnam War, the Hmong Rebels of Laos Fought Communism. Now they Desperately Battle for their Own Survival"], ''Time Magazine'', 5 May 2003.
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20070311002504/http://www.voanews.com/lao/archive/2004-01/a-2004-01-28-4-1.cfm "Vang Pao Met with Senior State Department Official"], by Sing Bourommavong, Voice of America news, 28 January 2004.
*[http://www.theworld.org/?q=node/10794 "Hmong Hero Faces Trial in California (audio)]", ''The World'', 14 June 2007.
*{{unfit|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20070715080210/http://www.heritage.org/Research/AsiaandthePacific/HL96.cfm "Against All Odds: The Laotian Freedom Fighters"]}}, by General Vang Pao, [[The Heritage Foundation]] Lecture #96, 19 March 1987.
*{{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070705214752/http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1282/is_n20_v47/ai_17443642 |date=July 5, 2007 |title="Acts of Betrayal: Persecution of Hmong" }}, by Michael Johns, ''National Review'', 23 October 1995.
*[http://www.hmongstudiesjournal.org/uploads/4/5/8/7/4587788/vangandheinhsj16.pdf "Hmong American Leadership and Unity in the Post-Vang Pao Era"], by Nengher Vang and Jeremy Hein, Hmong Studies Journal, 16(2015): 1–18.

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vang, Pao}}
[[Category:1929 births]]
[[Category:2011 deaths]]
[[Category:American people of Hmong descent]]
[[Category:American civil rights activists]]
[[Category:Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale)]]
[[Category:Deaths from pneumonia in California]]
[[Category:Laotian anti-communists]]
[[Category:Laotian exiles]]
[[Category:Laotian emigrants to the United States]]
[[Category:Laotian generals]]
[[Category:Laotian military leaders]]
[[Category:Laotian prisoners and detainees]]
[[Category:Military personnel of the Vietnam War]]
[[Category:People of the First Indochina War]]
[[Category:People from Xiangkhouang province]]
[[Category:People of the Laotian Civil War]]
[[Category:Prisoners and detainees of the United States federal government]]
[[Category:War criminals]]