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| American Legion Post 998 |
| 4700 Derry St. Lawnton, Pa 17111 717-564-1015 |
POW MIA
“We call your attention to this small table which occupies a place of dignity and
honor. It is set for one, symbolizing the fact that members of our armed forces are
missing from our ranks. They are referred to as:
POWS and MIAS.
“ We call them comrades. They are unable to be with their loved ones and families,
so we join together to pay humble tribute to them, and to bear witness to their
continued absence.
“The table is small, symbolizing the frailty of one prisoner, alone against his or her
suppressors.
“The tablecloth is white, symbolic of the purity of their intentions to respond to their
Country’s call to arms.
“The single rose in the vase signifies the blood they may have shed in sacrifice to
ensure the freedom of our beloved United States of America. This rose also reminds
us of the family and friends of our missing comrades who keep family, while awaiting
their return.
“The red ribbon on the vase represents the red ribbons worn on the lapels of the
thousands who demand, with unyielding determination, a proper account of our
comrades who are not among us.
“A slice of lemon on the plate reminds us of their bitter fate.
“The salt sprinkled on the plate reminds us of the countless fallen tears of families
as they wait.
“The glass is inverted, they cannot toast with us at this time.
“The chair is empty. They are NOT here.
“The candle is reminiscent of the light of hope, which lives in our hearts to
illuminate their way home, away from their captors, to open arms of a grateful
nation.
“The American flag reminds us that many of them may never return-and have paid
the supreme sacrifice to insure our freedom.
Let us pray to the Supreme Commander that all of our comrades will soon be back in
our ranks.
Paris Peace Accords of 1973, which ended US involvement in Vietnam, the Democratic
Republic of Vietnam(North Vietnam( agreed to release all POWs that it was holding.
prisoners of war as “victims of events:”who deserved “decent and humane
treatment”. Nonetheless, North Vietnam insisted that the crews of US bombers were
guilty of crimes against huma ity and returning POWs told stories of mistreatment by
Vietnam had not returned all PWOs and was still holding Americans captive only
magnified. The plight of boat people fleeing Vietnam and Vietnam’s invasion of POWs
and MIAs are an important legacy of the Vietnam War, with ramifications for
Cambodia in 1978 reinforced these impressions of an In humane Vietnamese a
Cambodia in 1978 reinforced these impressions of an In humane Vietnamese a
government, officially called the Socialist Republic of Vietnam following the North’s
government, officially called the Socialist Republic of Vietnam following the North’s
victory of 1975. These events helped to solidify public and congressional support
trade embargo.
The United States made “full accountability” of MIAs a condition of diplomatic
recognition of Vietnam. At the end of the war, 1,750 Americans were listed as missing
in Vietnam, with a another MIAs in neighboring Laos and Cambodia. The United
States also insisted that Vietnam assist in the recovery of remains of MIAs who had
died in Vietnam and in the return of any individuals who might have survived the war.
Of particular concern were the discrepancy cases, where individuals were believed to
have survived an incident such as bailing out of an aircraft and having been
reportedly seen later, but were not among the returning POWs.
The POW and MIA controversy triggered a rigorous debate and became a popular
culture phenomenon in the late 1970s and 1980s, despite Pentagon and congressional
investigations that indicated there were no more than 200 unresolved MIA cases out
of the 2266 Department of Defense still listed as missing and about a dozen POWs
unaccounted for. By contrast, Vietnam still considers approximately 300,000 North
and South Vietnamese as MIA.
President Ronald Reagan, speaking before the National League of POW/MIA families
in 1987, stated that until all our questions are fully answered, we will assume that
some of our countrymen are live. The Vietnam Veterans of America, which sent
several investigatin groups to Vietnam in the 1980’s, helped renew contact s between
the U.S. and Vietnamese governments. Accordingly, Vietnamese authorities and
representatives of the Reagan administration reached agreements that resulted in
cooperation in recovering the remains of American casualties. Beginning in the late
1980’s, Vietnam returned several hundred sets of remains to the United States. In
addition, progress occurred in clarifying”discrepancy cases.”
The question resurfaced in 1990’s about whether President Richard Nixon and the
Secretary of State Henry Kissinger had done all they could during peace negotiations
to free service men knowingly left behind or whether they both were so desperate to
get out of Vietnam that they sacrificed POWs. Both Nixon and Kissinger maintained
that it was the doves in Congress at the time who prevented any effective military
action in finding out the truth about POWs when it was still possible to do so.... in the
summer of 1973.
On 3 February 1994, with the approval of the Senate and business community,
President Bill Clinton removed the nineteen-year trade embargo against Vietnam.
Republic of Vietnam(North Vietnam( agreed to release all POWs that it was holding.
prisoners of war as “victims of events:”who deserved “decent and humane
treatment”. Nonetheless, North Vietnam insisted that the crews of US bombers were
guilty of crimes against huma ity and returning POWs told stories of mistreatment by
Vietnam had not returned all PWOs and was still holding Americans captive only
magnified. The plight of boat people fleeing Vietnam and Vietnam’s invasion of POWs
and MIAs are an important legacy of the Vietnam War, with ramifications for
Cambodia in 1978 reinforced these impressions of an In humane Vietnamese a
Cambodia in 1978 reinforced these impressions of an In humane Vietnamese a
government, officially called the Socialist Republic of Vietnam following the North’s
government, officially called the Socialist Republic of Vietnam following the North’s
victory of 1975. These events helped to solidify public and congressional support
trade embargo.
The United States made “full accountability” of MIAs a condition of diplomatic
recognition of Vietnam. At the end of the war, 1,750 Americans were listed as missing
in Vietnam, with a another MIAs in neighboring Laos and Cambodia. The United
States also insisted that Vietnam assist in the recovery of remains of MIAs who had
died in Vietnam and in the return of any individuals who might have survived the war.
Of particular concern were the discrepancy cases, where individuals were believed to
have survived an incident such as bailing out of an aircraft and having been
reportedly seen later, but were not among the returning POWs.
The POW and MIA controversy triggered a rigorous debate and became a popular
culture phenomenon in the late 1970s and 1980s, despite Pentagon and congressional
investigations that indicated there were no more than 200 unresolved MIA cases out
of the 2266 Department of Defense still listed as missing and about a dozen POWs
unaccounted for. By contrast, Vietnam still considers approximately 300,000 North
and South Vietnamese as MIA.
President Ronald Reagan, speaking before the National League of POW/MIA families
in 1987, stated that until all our questions are fully answered, we will assume that
some of our countrymen are live. The Vietnam Veterans of America, which sent
several investigatin groups to Vietnam in the 1980’s, helped renew contact s between
the U.S. and Vietnamese governments. Accordingly, Vietnamese authorities and
representatives of the Reagan administration reached agreements that resulted in
cooperation in recovering the remains of American casualties. Beginning in the late
1980’s, Vietnam returned several hundred sets of remains to the United States. In
addition, progress occurred in clarifying”discrepancy cases.”
The question resurfaced in 1990’s about whether President Richard Nixon and the
Secretary of State Henry Kissinger had done all they could during peace negotiations
to free service men knowingly left behind or whether they both were so desperate to
get out of Vietnam that they sacrificed POWs. Both Nixon and Kissinger maintained
that it was the doves in Congress at the time who prevented any effective military
action in finding out the truth about POWs when it was still possible to do so.... in the
summer of 1973.
On 3 February 1994, with the approval of the Senate and business community,
President Bill Clinton removed the nineteen-year trade embargo against Vietnam.
