The late Hmong military leader Vang Pao was revered among his people for leading guerrilla forces against the Communists in Vietnam. When he died Jan. 6 from pneumonia in Clovis, Calif., at age 81, the loss was keenly felt in Madison, where many Hmong resettled after the war. Noted: Madison dropped a plan in 2002 to name a park in honor of Vang Pao after UW-Madison history professor Alfred McCoy cited published sources alleging Vang Pao had ordered executions of his own followers, enemy prisoners of war and his political enemies.
Office of Strategic Communication