Authorities in Vietnam’s southern metropolis of Ho Chi Minh City have allowed the local Red Cross to hold a march on Aug 8 to raise funds for victims of Agent Orange, consequences of the Vietnam War. The march which is expected to attract around 3,000 people aims to seek supports for the victims who have been further suffered from daily life amid the country’s soaring inflation that climbed to a 29-month high at 19.8% in May. Vietnam has an estimated number of 4.8 million people suffering from 80 million liters of defoliants including the highly toxic Agent Orange over 10% of total areas in the southern region sprayed by American troops from 1961 to 1971. Millions of Vietnamese people who suffered AO who have been facing numerous difficulties caused by diseases including cancers and disability have lived on social welfare and supports by foreign organizations. The actual number is said to much higher and consequences will last for three generations. Many foreign organizations have raised funds for Vietnam’s AO victims for years in an effort to ease pain among miserable people. Vietnamese AO victims are regarded as the most vulnerable people of the disadvantaged groups in the Southeast Asian country as they are direct, second or third-generation victims of the toxic chemical spreading. Contamination from dioxin, a chemical used in Agent Orange that has been linked to cancers and birth defects, has remained a thorny topic between the former foes as relations thrive on other areas. (Thanh Nien – Young People Aug 3 p2)
