Plantation laborers in French Indochina were referred to as "coolies," a pejorative word for Asian labourers. They toiled long hours in deplorable circumstances for low salaries. Some workers were compensated in rice rather than cash.
France would recognise the Viet Minh administration and provide Vietnam the status of a free state inside the French Union underneath the terms of the agreement. French forces were to stay in Vietnam for another five years before being phased out.
