Do the South Vietnamese still have animosity towards the North Vietnamese, and the other way around?

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Charlie

Yes to a degree , i lived i Saigon and there was an element of miss trust towards the North ie Hanoi . You must remember that all the intellectuals of Saigon were ostracized at the time of the fall of Saigon , its not unpleasant but it is noticeable .

barry c

I'm gathering from the way the question is phrased that you're referring to some lingering North/South political thing. The answer is no, though it is likely that some southerners feel, and no doubt with some justification, that the good bureaucratic jobs tend to go to northerners.

But there is, and always has been, a slightly contempuous feeling between the two groups, having nothing to do with politics, economics, or "the conflict". It's not altogether different from the bias between American north and south. The southerners, I don't quite know how to put it, maybe you could say they consider the northerners hoity-toity, maybe with a broom stuck up you know where, stultifyingly stilted; whereas the northerners consider the southerners to be crass, lacking manners, etc.

I think I am on safe ground saying that their very accents and speech mannerisms get on each others nerves. Culture is embodied in the way people talk.

It's without doubt always been like this, and will always be like this. But it has nothing to do with the war.

Izzy_Cool

Interesting question and the answer really depends on WHERE you ask this question.

If you ask it here in Vietnam, you'd find that some of the southerners have a poor attitude of the north in terms of Internet speeds, driving on roads, foods etc. In fact, one southern belle posted it on her blog and received death threats from some very irate northerners in return.

Other than that, no.
Vietnam is ONE country now. Nobody has any interest in splitting it in two again.

What the US never understood is that while not every Vietnamese is a communist (most aren't really) they are ALL "nationalists."
They love their country.
Period.

Now, if you ask that question in the US, mainly California's Vietnamese communities who are made up of former southern Vietnamese, you would have a resounding YES there is animosity.

Many of the American Viet Kieu (Overseas Vietnamese) still harbour a hatred for the current government of Vietnam, they hate Ho Chi Minh and anything to do with "communists."

Given what they went through, their feelings are understandable, but hard to justify nowadays. Times change and they should bury the hatchet already.

Fortunately, the younger generation is less fiery in their feelings, but this will take time to go away.

I hope this answered your question.

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