</s>176-10037-10491 2025 RELEASE UNDER THE PRESIDENT JOHN F. KENNEDY ASSASSINATION RECORDS ACT OF 1992 JFK ASSASSINTATION SYSTEM IDENTIFICATION FORM AGENCY : NARA RECORD NUMBER : 176-100377-10491 RECORD SERIES : National Security Files AGENCY FILE NUMBER: AGENCY FILE NUMBER :: CIA FROM : TO : TITLE : Information Report Re: Appeal to President Kennedy DATE : 1/24/1962 PAGES : 2 SUBJECTS : 2 DOCUMENT TYPE : CLASSIFICATION : RESTRICTIONS : CURRENT STATUS : DATE OF LAST REVIEW : 9/10/2000 OPENING CRITERIA : COMMENTS : National security Files, Box 195: Countries, Vietnam, General COMMENTS: Box 6. 11/13/61-11/31/61. Box 6 .

Summary  
This document is a field report dated January 24, 1962, detailing an appeal by South Vietnamese military officers to President John F. Kennedy. Major Pham Van LEEU, a former commander of the South Vietnamese Marine Corps and member of a group of South Vietnamese officers held in protective custody by the Cambodian government, submitted a proposal to the U.S. Embassy in Saigon. The group, led by Colonel Nouver Chane, criticized the Diem government’s corruption and inefficiency in combating Viet Cong insurgents. They requested U.S. policy changes to support their efforts to overthrow President Diem and address the insurgency. Major LEEU stated that Cambodian authorities planned to release his group by late January 1962, with approval from Prince Norodom Sihanouk. The group sought asylum in the United States and wished to maintain contact with U.S. embassy officials.  

Key People  
- Major Pham Van LEEU (South Vietnamese officer, former Marine Corps commander)  
- Colonel Nouver Chane (leader of the South Vietnamese officers’ group)  
- Prince Norodom Sihanouk (Cambodian monarch, approved release of the group)  
- President John F. Kennedy (target of the appeal)  

Key Locations  
- Saigon (U.S. Embassy location)  
- Cambodia (site of protective custody for the South Vietnamese officers)  

Key Events  
- Submission of a proposal by Major LEEU and his group to the U.S. Embassy in Saigon, requesting U.S. intervention against the Diem government.  
- Plan to release the group from Cambodian custody by late January 1962.  
- Appeal for asylum in the United States and continued contact with U.S. embassy officials.  

Key Organizations  
- Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)  
- U.S. State Department  
- South Vietnamese military (Marine Corps, Diem government)  
- Cambodian government (security service involved in custody of the group)

JFK Declassified Files

176-10037-10491.pdf

Document Summary

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