They are doing considerably worse than those in Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea. If the US had stayed in South Vietnam, they'd likely be living at the same stand

They are doing considerably worse than those in Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea. If the US had stayed in South Vietnam, they'd likely be living at the same standard of living as South Koreans, instead, they continue to live in a fairly oppressive system without rule of law, basic freedom of expression, high levels of corruption etc. Thailand would have likely benefited as well. Thailand is often cited as a 'special case' due to it's lack of direct colonization relative to the rest of the area.