President of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Central Committee Huynh Dam has called on Vietnamese people and expatriates, foreign governments and international organizations to continue providing support to Vietnamese Agent Orange (AO)/dioxin victims.
He made the appeal at the June 10 ceremony to launch the campaign “Acting for AO victims in Vietnam” that will last until August 10 to mark 50 years of AO in Vietnam.
Under the campaign, activities will focus on providing wheelchairs and building houses and taking care of AO victims as well as mobilizing support to the Vietnam Association of Victims of Agent Orange (AO)/dioxin (VAVA) and AO victims in their lawsuit against US chemical companies for providing toxic chemicals to US troops for using during the war in Vietnam.
Party Politburo member and permanent member of the Party Central Committee’s Secretariat Truong Tan Sang said the campaign is a noble deed which will help AO victims overcome difficulties to integrate into the community and build a better life.
Sang called on people of all strata to respond to the campaign and put forward initiatives to mobilize support and take care of the victims.
He appealed to international friends for further supporting Vietnamese AO victims in their fight for justice, saying their support will be given to not only Vietnamese AO victims but also other AO victims in many countries for world peace and eternal justice.
The Party Politburo member, who handed gifts to 10 AO victims at the ceremony, emphasized the need to make a comprehensive assessment of the damage of the chemical war caused by US troops on Vietnam’s environment and people.
According to VAVA, in the 1961-1971 period, US troops sprayed 80 million liters of chemical defoliants containing nearly 400kg of dioxin.
As many as 4.8 million Vietnamese people were exposed to dioxin, of whom 3 million suffer from health problems due to the exposure.
The association has mobilized almost 200 billion VND for AO victims over the past six years. (vietnamplus.vn Jun 10)
