General Vang Pao Dies At 81

January 7th, 2011 - 7:09 pm ICT by GD  

By Meena Kar
vang-paoJan 7, (THAINDIAN NEWS) Vang Pao a revered ex-general in the Royal Army of Laos had led thousands of Hmong mercenaries in a CIA-backed secret army during World War II, and with the French against the North Vietnamese in the 1950s, and when it was lost, it resulted in many of his people going into exile. He breathed his last while he was in exile in US. He had been in hospital for around 10 days before his death late on Thursday. He was 81 at the time of his demise.

Vang Pao died on Thursday, after remaining hospitalized for about 10 days, as revealed by Michelle Von Tersch, a spokeswoman for Clovis Community Medical Center. The leader had been diagnosed with pneumonia, and was admitted to the medical center for the same reason. According to what the doctors said, Vang Pao showed signs of recovering from the illness even on Wednesday, but from Thursday morning he did not respond to the treatments. His condition worsened with time and finally on Thursday he succumbed to the disease. Former Central Intelligence Agency Chief William Colby once called Gen Vang Pao “the biggest hero of the Vietnam War”. The General had remained a controversial figure, and deeply loved for his insistence on freedom from foreign domination.

Blong Xiong, a Fresno city councilman and prominent Hmong-American said about Gen Vang Pao that he was the last person of his kind, and the leadership he had shown would always be remembered with high esteem. Gen Vang Pao had a kind of personality that held everyone together, said Lar Yang of Fresno. He also said that the vacuum created, could never be filled by anyone. He demise has left people in search of another Gen Vang Pao. We pray his soul rests in peace.

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