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Thanh Nien News - 11 March, 2005<br>
<a href="http://www.thanhniennews.com/politics/?catid=1&newsid=5509" eudora="autourl">
http://www.thanhniennews.com/politics/?catid=1&newsid=5509<br><br>
</a>Agent Orange victims blast U.S. verdict, vow to keep fighting<br>
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Vietnamese Agent Orange victims have slammed the U.S. court
dismissal<br>
of the Agent Orange case against chemical companies and said they<br>
would legally fight the decision until justice had been
achieved.<br><br>
On March 10, U.S. District Court Judge Jack B. Weinstein dismissed<br>
the lawsuit, saying he disagreed that the allegedly toxic defoliants<br>
and similar U.S. herbicides should be called poisons banned under<br>
international rules of war.<br><br>
"His verdict is completely unreasonable and unjust," Nguyen
Trong<br>
Nhan, vice president of the Vietnam Association of Victims of Agent<br>
Orange/Dioxin told Reuters a day after the decision.<br><br>
The ruling by the US federal court shows its irresponsibility toward<br>
miseries of millions of AO victims and their families in Vietnam,<br>
stressed the association later in a declaration.<br><br>
"We will pursue the suit until justice is done," the
declaration<br>
said.<br><br>
Continuing the fight<br><br>
Lawyers representing Vietnamese Agent Orange victims plan to appeal<br>
to the Second Circuit Court of Appeal.<br><br>
The lawsuit should only be decided by the U.S. Supreme Court, said<br>
William H. Goodman, one of the plaintiff's lawyers in the lawsuit<br>
filed by Vietnamese Agent Orange victims against 37 U.S. chemical<br>
companies that produced the toxin.<br><br>
Mr. Weinstein wrote in his 233-page ruling that "no treaty or<br>
agreement, express or implied, of the United States made the use<br>
of herbicides in Vietnam a violation of the laws of war or any other<br>
form of international law until at the earliest April of
1975."<br><br>
"The plaintiffs could not prove that Agent Orange, sprayed by
the<br>
U.S. forces from 1961-1971, had caused their illnesses, largely<br>
because of a lack of large-scale research," he added.<br><br>
However, Mr. Weinstein did reject an argument from the chemical<br>
companies that they were shielded by rules protecting military<br>
contractors from lawsuits for providing war material. If
supplying<br>
contaminated herbicides had been a war crime, the chemical companies<br>
could have refused to do it, argued the judge.<br><br>
He also affirmed that the Vietnam Association of Victims of Agent<br>
Orange/Dioxin had a legal right to represent the Vietnamese victims<br>
in the lawsuit and that it was not tied down by the U.S. law on<br>
time limitation to sue. Thus, Vietnamese Agent Orange victims can<br>
appeal to higher courts in accordance with U.S. law, said Mr.<br>
Weinstein.<br><br>
Meanwhile, Jonathan Moore, representing the plaintiff's lawyer<br>
delegation, said although the war had been over for 30 years,<br>
Vietnamese victims were still being affected by the dioxin.<br><br>
Mr. Moore said he would pursue the lawsuit to the very end in order<br>
to bring justice to the Vietnamese victims.<br><br>
Discontentment<br><br>
Speaking to local and foreign reporters in Hanoi, Spokesman of the<br>
Vietnam Foreign Ministry Le Dzung said: Vietnamese people are<br>
discontent with the verdict of the U.S. District Court in Brooklyn.<br>
Whatever the verdict is, the truth is always that the Agent<br>
Orange/dioxin, which the U.S. army used during the Vietnam War, has<br>
had dire consequences for Vietnams people and environment.<br><br>
Forty years have passed, but the consequences have continued until<br>
now. Many research projects by Vietnamese and U.S. scientists have<br>
affirmed the fact. Millions of Vietnamese Agent Orange victims have<br>
suffered fatal diseases. Children with congenital malformation<br>
caused by the chemical have led difficult lives.<br><br>
The lawsuit filed by Vietnamese Agent Orange victims against U.S.<br>
chemical firms is perfectly legitimate. The companies have to bear<br>
legal responsibility for all victims of the chemical, not only<br>
American veterans but also Vietnamese victims, Mr. Dzung said.<br><br>
Global support<br><br>
Immediately after the judge's decision was announced, foreign<br>
organizations expressed their strong oppositions to the decision<br>
and committed to continuing their campaigns for the justice.<br><br>
"Judge Weinstein has made it easier for our country to continue
to<br>
evade moral responsibility for the consequences of its
actions,"<br>
John McAuliff, executive director of the New York-based Fund for<br>
Reconciliation and Development, said in a statement.<br><br>
Meanwhile, the Vietnam Agent Orange Relief and Responsibility<br>
Campaign (VAORRC) called on all American organizations and people<br>
to increase their support to Vietnamese victims in their continued<br>
case to the Second Circuit Court of Appeal and to demand the U.S.<br>
government take legal and moral responsibility to compensate the<br>
Vietnamese victims.<br><br>
U.S. and international laws provide Vietnamese Agent Orange victims<br>
with the right to prove their case against those who have profited<br>
so handsomely from the manufacturing of the dioxin, said VAORRC.<br><br>
Dave Cline, a representative of American Veterans for Peace, said<br>
that American veterans would be obliged to heal the wounds caused<br>
by Agent Orange in the war and to seek ways to bring justice to<br>
those suffering from the horrific effects of the toxic chemical.<br><br>
After a long period of struggle by American veterans, U.S. Congress<br>
in 1991 conceded that Agent Orange had effects on American veterans<br>
who joined the war in Vietnam, said Mr. Cline.<br><br>
He demanded that Vietnamese victims be treated like American
veterans<br>
affected by the dioxin and called on American veterans to take part<br>
in a wide-spread campaign to achieve justice for the Vietnamese<br>
victims.<br><br>
(Source: Vietnam News Agency & Reuters)<br><br>
Copyright Thanh Nien News<br><br>
<br><br>
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<br>
BBC News Online<br>
<a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4336941.stm" eudora="autourl">
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4336941.stm<br><br>
</a>JUDGE SAYS POISONING 150,000 VIETNAMESE CHILDREN IS NO CRIME<br><br>
BBC - A US federal court in New York has dismissed a legal action <br>
brought by Vietnamese plaintiffs over the use of Agent Orange during the
<br>
Vietnam War. The plaintiffs had sought compensation from the firms that
<br>
manufactured the chemical, which allegedly caused birth defects, <br>
miscarriages and cancer. They said use of the defoliant - to strip away
<br>
forest cover during the war - was a war crime against millions. <br><br>
But Judge Jack Weinstein ruled there was no legal basis for their <br>
claims. The civil action was the first attempt by Vietnamese plaintiffs
<br>
to claim compensation for the effects of Agent Orange, which has been
<br>
linked to a multitude of heath problems, including diabetes. <br><br>
However, the chemical companies said no such link had been proved. The
<br>
defendants - including Dow Chemical and the Monsanto Corporation - also
<br>
argued that the US government was responsible for how the chemical was
<br>
used, not the manufacturers. They maintained that US courts could not
<br>
punish corporations for carrying out the orders of a president <br>
exercising his powers as commander-in-chief. <br><br>
In a 233-page ruling, Judge Weinstein threw out the case, saying:
"There <br>
is no basis for any of the claims of plaintiffs under the domestic law
<br>
of any nation or state or under any form of international
law."<br><br>
<br>
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<br>
Obedience to Authority:<br><br>
"Lawyers for chemical manufacturers Monsanto, Dow Chemical and
a<br>
dozen other companies argued the firms should not be punished for<br>
following the orders of the nation's president and that
international<br>
law exempted corporations from liability for alleged war
crimes."<br><br>
What would Stanley Milgram say of this?<br><br>
AP - March 12, 2005<br><br>
Agent Orange Plaintiffs to Appeal Ruling By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS<br><br>
HANOI, Vietnam (AP) -- A former North Vietnamese soldier who spent<br>
years fighting in the war, Nguyen Van Quy is devoting himself to<br>
another long battle -- this one against Agent Orange.<br><br>
Quy, 50, a plaintiff in a class-action lawsuit against the U.S.<br>
manufacturers of the wartime defoliant, said he does not plan to<br>
give up hope despite a U.S. federal judge's decision Thursday to<br>
dismiss the case accusing the companies of committing war crimes<br>
by supplying Agent Orange.<br><br>
``I'm determined to pursue the case until the end, because this is<br>
justice. I'll fight, not just for myself, but for millions of<br>
Vietnamese victims,'' said Quy, who is fighting stomach and liver<br>
cancer he blames on his exposure to Agent Orange. ``Those who<br>
produced these toxic chemicals must take responsibility for their<br>
action.''<br><br>
U.S. District Judge Jack B. Weinstein threw out the case in New<br>
York, saying it had no basis in law and the plaintiffs could not<br>
prove that Agent Orange had caused their illnesses, largely because<br>
of a lack of research.<br><br>
``There is no basis for any of the claims of plaintiffs under the<br>
domestic law of any nation or state or under any form of
international<br>
law,'' he said in a 233-page ruling.<br><br>
During the Vietnam War, U.S. aircraft sprayed more than 21 million<br>
gallons of defoliant, mostly Agent Orange, over the country from<br>
1962 to 1971 to destroy crops and remove the communist forces'<br>
cover. It has been blamed for a vast range of health problems.<br><br>
The group that filed the suit, the Vietnam Association for Victims<br>
of Agent Orange, said it plans to appeal.<br><br>
``Weinstein has turned a blind eye before the obvious truth,'' said<br>
Nguyen Trong Nhan, the group's vice president. ``It's a shame for<br>
him to put out that decision. We just want justice, nothing
more.''<br><br>
The lawsuit was the first-ever attempt by Vietnamese plaintiffs to<br>
seek compensation for the effects of Agent Orange, which contains<br>
the toxic chemical dioxin.<br><br>
Lawyers for chemical manufacturers Monsanto, Dow Chemical and a<br>
dozen other companies argued the firms should not be punished for<br>
following the orders of the nation's president and that
international<br>
law exempted corporations from liability for alleged war crimes.<br><br>
Many U.S. veterans and Vietnamese have long blamed Agent Orange for<br>
cancer, diabetes, spina bifida and other problems. The U.S.
government<br>
claims there is no direct evidence linking dioxin to the
ailments.<br><br>
However, about 10,000 U.S. veterans receive disability benefits<br>
related to Agent Orange exposure.<br><br>
Vietnam estimates that some 3 million people were exposed to the<br>
herbicide and another 1 million were directly affected by it.<br><br>
Vietnam's government has never formally asked for compensation for<br>
Agent Orange victims, though Foreign Ministry spokesman Le Dung<br>
repeated Hanoi's contention that the United States has a moral<br>
responsibility to heal the wounds of war.<br><br>
``Regardless of what the court's ruling is, it can't change the<br>
truth that the Agent Orange used by the U.S. forces during the war<br>
in Vietnam caused extremely heavy consequences to the Vietnamese<br>
people and environment,'' he said. ``Solving the consequences of<br>
Agent Orange is a pressing humanitarian issue.''<br><br>
Quy, the former soldier, believes Agent Orange is also responsible<br>
for the birth defects in his two children. His 18-year-old son was<br>
born with spinal problems and mental disabilities, while his<br>
14-year-old daughter is deaf, mute and developmentally disabled.<br><br>
``I don't know how long I can live, but if I die, my family, my<br>
friends will continue to pursue the suit to ensure justice,'' he<br>
said.<br>
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