Orange Day

[Teacher Mark 53]

News from Vietnam:

The nation is commemorating one of the greatest injustices in modern history with a series of events held Sunday and Monday to express solidarity with and demand justice for Agent Orange victims.

Today marks the first Orange Day that has been designated as such to mark the day in 1961 that American forces began spraying the highly toxic Agent Orange defoliant over large areas of Vietnam.

More than 10,000 people joined a walk Sunday in Ho Chi Minh City, including hundreds of Agent Orange (AO) victims.

The walk, which was organized by the HCMC Red Cross, Vietnam Television and Vietnam Mass Media Development JSC, donated VND2.7 billion (US$157,800) to the fund for AO victims and handicapped people.

The event also sent a message to encourage support and donations from the community for supporting the victims.

An exchange among the participants was held after the walk.

“Agent Orange victims and the handicapped are always willing to struggle for the better but not all them have the ability to do so,” said Huynh Thanh Thao, an AO victim from Cu Chi District who joined the walk.

“I joined the walk to ask for the justice for AO victims like me in Cu Chi as well as the whole country,” she added.

The Vietnam Red Cross on Monday launches the Orange Month that will last until September 10.

Vietnam Television (VTV) on Monday will broadcasting for 24 hours programming related to AO victims on its VTV4 channel, including local and international films.

VTV expects to donate VND60 billion ($3.5 million) to AO victims through the Orange Day this year.

The People’s Aid Coordinating Committee under Vietnam Union of Friendship Organizations held a charity function for AO victims on Saturday in Hanoi.

The event, titled “Justice and the Heart” was held at the Hanoi Culture Palace. It brought together party leaders, government officials, diplomats and local artists to express solidarity with the victims.

The event also raised funds for the Vietnam Association for Victims of Agent Orange/Dioxin’s campaign to build 55 half-day daycare centers for AO-affected children and 550 charity houses. The campaign also aims to provide 1,100 scholarships for AO-affected children and 1,100 employment grants.

In the Mekong Delta province of Vinh Long, local authorities on Monday will hand 200 gifts to AO victims.

The Vinh Long AO Association will exhibit 130 paintings by AO victims and handicapped children from Monday until Sunday. The paintings will be sold to raise fund for AO victims.

There are around 6,600 AO victims in Vinh Long, 150 of whom have lost their lives.

In Bac Lieu Province, several teams of officials have been dispatched to visit and hand over gifts to AO victims. District authorities have also donated VND1 billion ($58,462) toward scholarships and purchase of wheelchairs for the victims.

Reported by Thanh Nien staff

http://www.thanhniennews.com/society/?cati...mp;newsid=51590

[Niels Bohr 72]

Wow. Amazing!

[NickD 202]

Not only Viet Namese, a brother-in-law has been fighting it, thought he was going to kick the bucket many times, but still is hanging in there, not much left of him. It's not that he volunteered, but he did have a choice, VN, stockcade, or run up to Canada, he was a good boy, now has to pay a life long price for it.

Today, we are importing goods from VN, during the Korean War, the Chinese were sending millions of troops to destroy us, today we are their major exporter. Does any of this make sense?

Oh, Ross and other made millions off this war.

Edited August 10, 2009 by NickD

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

From Wikipedia...

U.S. Vietnamese victims class action lawsuit

On January 31, 2004, a victim's rights group, the Vietnam Association for Victims of Agent Orange/Dioxin (VAVA), filed a lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York in Brooklyn, against several U.S. companies for liability in causing personal injury, by developing and producing the chemical. Dow Chemical and Monsanto were the two largest producers of Agent Orange for the U.S. military and were named in the suit along with the dozens of other companies (Diamond Shamrock, Uniroyal, Thompson Chemicals, Hercules, etc.). A number of lawsuits by American GIs were settled out of court - without admission of liability by the chemical companies - in the years since the Vietnam War. In 1984, some chemical companies that manufactured Agent Orange paid $180 million into a fund for United States veterans following a lawsuit.

On March 10, 2005, Judge Jack B. Weinstein - who had defended the U.S. veterans victims of Agent Orange - dismissed the suit, ruling that there was no legal basis for the plaintiffs' claims. The judge concluded that Agent Orange was not considered a poison under international law at the time of its use by the U.S.; that the U.S. was not prohibited from using it as a herbicide; and that the companies which produced the substance were not liable for the method of its use by the government. The U.S. government is not a party in the lawsuit, claiming sovereign immunity. Three judges on the Second Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan heard the Appeals case on June 18, 2007. They upheld Weinstein's ruling to dismiss the case. They ruled that even though the herbicides contained a dioxin, a known-poison, they were not intended to be used as a poison on humans. Therefore they were not considered a chemical weapon and not a violation of international law. A further review of the case by the whole panel of judges of the Court of Appeals also confirmed this decision. The lawyers for the Vietnamese have filed a petition to the US Supreme Court to hear the case. On March 2, 2009, the Supreme Court denied certiorari and refused to reconsider the ruling of the Court of Appeals. http://www.supremecourtus.gov/orders/court...s/030209zor.pdf

In order to assist those who have been impacted by Agent Orange/Dioxin, the Vietnamese have established "Peace villages", which each host between 50 to 100 victims, giving them medical and psychological help. As of 2006, there were 11 such villages, thus granting some social protection to fewer than a thousand victims. U.S. veterans of the war in Vietnam and individuals who are aware and sympathetic to the impacts of Agent Orange have also supported these programs in Vietnam. An international group of Veterans from the U.S. and its allies during the Vietnam war working together with their former enemy - veterans from the Vietnam Veterans Association - established the Vietnam Friendship Village[39] located outside of Hanoi. The center provides medical care, rehabilitation and vocational training for children and veterans from Vietnam who have been impacted by Agent Orange. In 1998, The Vietnam Red Cross established the Vietnam Agent Orange Victims Fund to provide direct assistance to families throughout Vietnam that have been impacted by Agent Orange. In 2003, the Vietnam Association of Victims of Agent Orange (VAVA) was formed. In addition to filing the lawsuit against the chemical companies, VAVA also provides medical care, rehabilitation services and financial assistance to those impacted by Agent Orange.

[edit] South Korean lawsuit

In 1999, about 20,000 South Koreans filed two separated lawsuits against U.S. companies, seeking more than $5 billion in damages. After losing a decision in 2002, they filed an appeal.

In January 2006, the South Korean Appeals Court ordered Dow Chemical and Monsanto to pay $62 million in compensation to about 6,800 people. The ruling acknowledged that "the defendants failed to ensure safety as the defoliants manufactured by the defendants had higher levels of dioxins than standard", and, quoting the U.S. National Academy of Science report, declared that there was a "causal relationship" between Agent Orange and 11 diseases, including cancers of the lung, larynx and prostate. However, the judges failed to acknowledge "the relationship between the chemical and peripheral neuropathy, the disease most widespread among Agent Orange victims" according to the Mercury News.

[edit] Canada lawsuit

On July 12, 2005, Merchant Law Group LLP on behalf of over 1,100 Canadian veterans and civilians who were living in and around the CFB Gagetown filed a lawsuit to pursue class action litigation concerning Agent Orange and Agent Purple to the Court of Queen's Bench of Manitoba. As of September 30, 2007, the case is still going.[40]

Lovely.

[Kevin and 10]

From Wikipedia...

U.S. Vietnamese victims class action lawsuit

On January 31, 2004, a victim's rights group, the Vietnam Association for Victims of Agent Orange/Dioxin (VAVA), filed a lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York in Brooklyn, against several U.S. companies for liability in causing personal injury, by developing and producing the chemical. Dow Chemical and Monsanto were the two largest producers of Agent Orange for the U.S. military and were named in the suit along with the dozens of other companies (Diamond Shamrock, Uniroyal, Thompson Chemicals, Hercules, etc.). A number of lawsuits by American GIs were settled out of court - without admission of liability by the chemical companies - in the years since the Vietnam War. In 1984, some chemical companies that manufactured Agent Orange paid $180 million into a fund for United States veterans following a lawsuit.

On March 10, 2005, Judge Jack B. Weinstein - who had defended the U.S. veterans victims of Agent Orange - dismissed the suit, ruling that there was no legal basis for the plaintiffs' claims. The judge concluded that Agent Orange was not considered a poison under international law at the time of its use by the U.S.; that the U.S. was not prohibited from using it as a herbicide; and that the companies which produced the substance were not liable for the method of its use by the government. The U.S. government is not a party in the lawsuit, claiming sovereign immunity. Three judges on the Second Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan heard the Appeals case on June 18, 2007. They upheld Weinstein's ruling to dismiss the case. They ruled that even though the herbicides contained a dioxin, a known-poison, they were not intended to be used as a poison on humans. Therefore they were not considered a chemical weapon and not a violation of international law. A further review of the case by the whole panel of judges of the Court of Appeals also confirmed this decision. The lawyers for the Vietnamese have filed a petition to the US Supreme Court to hear the case. On March 2, 2009, the Supreme Court denied certiorari and refused to reconsider the ruling of the Court of Appeals. http://www.supremecourtus.gov/orders/court...s/030209zor.pdf

In order to assist those who have been impacted by Agent Orange/Dioxin, the Vietnamese have established "Peace villages", which each host between 50 to 100 victims, giving them medical and psychological help. As of 2006, there were 11 such villages, thus granting some social protection to fewer than a thousand victims. U.S. veterans of the war in Vietnam and individuals who are aware and sympathetic to the impacts of Agent Orange have also supported these programs in Vietnam. An international group of Veterans from the U.S. and its allies during the Vietnam war working together with their former enemy - veterans from the Vietnam Veterans Association - established the Vietnam Friendship Village[39] located outside of Hanoi. The center provides medical care, rehabilitation and vocational training for children and veterans from Vietnam who have been impacted by Agent Orange. In 1998, The Vietnam Red Cross established the Vietnam Agent Orange Victims Fund to provide direct assistance to families throughout Vietnam that have been impacted by Agent Orange. In 2003, the Vietnam Association of Victims of Agent Orange (VAVA) was formed. In addition to filing the lawsuit against the chemical companies, VAVA also provides medical care, rehabilitation services and financial assistance to those impacted by Agent Orange.

[edit] South Korean lawsuit

In 1999, about 20,000 South Koreans filed two separated lawsuits against U.S. companies, seeking more than $5 billion in damages. After losing a decision in 2002, they filed an appeal.

In January 2006, the South Korean Appeals Court ordered Dow Chemical and Monsanto to pay $62 million in compensation to about 6,800 people. The ruling acknowledged that "the defendants failed to ensure safety as the defoliants manufactured by the defendants had higher levels of dioxins than standard", and, quoting the U.S. National Academy of Science report, declared that there was a "causal relationship" between Agent Orange and 11 diseases, including cancers of the lung, larynx and prostate. However, the judges failed to acknowledge "the relationship between the chemical and peripheral neuropathy, the disease most widespread among Agent Orange victims" according to the Mercury News.

[edit] Canada lawsuit

On July 12, 2005, Merchant Law Group LLP on behalf of over 1,100 Canadian veterans and civilians who were living in and around the CFB Gagetown filed a lawsuit to pursue class action litigation concerning Agent Orange and Agent Purple to the Court of Queen's Bench of Manitoba. As of September 30, 2007, the case is still going.[40]

Lovely.

Nice, they will do the same thing when we have to address all the DU rounds being used in the Mideast.

[tmma 467]

For our Military victims of AO too- they are still out there and they are suffering and dying also.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

It beggars belief - apparently its OK to storm into one country and leave it littered with unexploded landmines and toxic chemical agents (and bomb the $hit out of another country that we weren't officially at war with at the time) and to avoid financial or moral responsibility for the damage to future generations of those people.

This is exactly the thinking that is employed when it comes to the US refusing to sign up to the International Criminal Court - its just arrogance personified: We can do what we like and ** everyone else.

Edited August 10, 2009 by Private Pike

[Teacher Mark 53]

It beggars belief - apparently its OK to storm into one country and leave it littered with unexploded landmines and toxic chemical agents (and bomb the $hit out of another country that we weren't officially at war with at the time) and to avoid financial or moral responsibility for the damage to future generations of those people.

This is exactly the thinking that is employed when it comes to signing up to the International Criminal Court - its just arrogance personified.

I compare it to coming to a friends house and thrashing the place. What we did here was criminal. There is no other way to describe it. I see deformities almost every day.

Edited August 10, 2009 by Mr. Saigon

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

For our Military victims of AO too- they are still out there and they are suffering and dying also.

At least they got a payout...

[Teacher Mark 53]

For our Military victims of AO too- they are still out there and they are suffering and dying also.

Yes they are. My Step Father was exposed and I met many veteran's at the VA Hospital that had been as well. The US Government took it's sweet time with them too.

My nephew, who appears to be a healthy young man, has diabete's. Evidently it can alter your genes, so we're wondering if there is a connection between him and my SF's exposure.

Edited August 10, 2009 by Mr. Saigon

[tmma 467]

For our Military victims of AO too- they are still out there and they are suffering and dying also.

At least they got a payout...

A payout of they were lucky enough to live long enough to jump through the red tape and hoops for it then in that case then-that makes it ok.

seriously....####### did you mean by that? No amount of money is going to make up for what AO era vets have endured.

Tell you what-head on down to the local VFW and tell them ' well at least you got a payout.'

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

For our Military victims of AO too- they are still out there and they are suffering and dying also.

At least they got a payout...

A payout of they were lucky enough to live long enough to jump through the red tape and hoops for it then in that case then-that makes it ok.

seriously....####### did you mean by that? No amount of money is going to make up for what AO era vets have endured.

Tell you what-head on down to the local VFW and tell them ' well at least you got a payout.'

There are no winners from that war so far as I can tell - but there are certainly people who are a heck of a lot worse off and who have no effective representation for their grievances.

There's really no need to get hysterical.

[tmma 467]

For our Military victims of AO too- they are still out there and they are suffering and dying also.

At least they got a payout...

A payout of they were lucky enough to live long enough to jump through the red tape and hoops for it then in that case then-that makes it ok.

seriously....####### did you mean by that? No amount of money is going to make up for what AO era vets have endured.

Tell you what-head on down to the local VFW and tell them ' well at least you got a payout.'

There are no winners from that war so far as I can tell - but there are certainly people who are a heck of a lot worse off and who have no effective representation for their grievances.

There's really no need to get hysterical.

Not hysterical at all; just mildly irked that you think money makes it OK and wondering how much money you think is enough to offset what has happened and is happening to the era vets. Some of them have died already; and received nothing.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

For our Military victims of AO too- they are still out there and they are suffering and dying also.

At least they got a payout...

A payout of they were lucky enough to live long enough to jump through the red tape and hoops for it then in that case then-that makes it ok.

seriously....####### did you mean by that? No amount of money is going to make up for what AO era vets have endured.

Tell you what-head on down to the local VFW and tell them ' well at least you got a payout.'

There are no winners from that war so far as I can tell - but there are certainly people who are a heck of a lot worse off and who have no effective representation for their grievances.

There's really no need to get hysterical.

Not hysterical at all; just mildly irked that you think money makes it OK and wondering how much money you think is enough to offset what has happened and is happening to the era vets. Some of them have died already; and received nothing.

I don't think its difficult to understand what I'm saying and to not misrepresent it for the purposes of hysterical outrage (yes, you were being hysterical).

In answer to you question, no I don't think money makes it "OK", but I do think its kinda outrageous that the US veterans of that war were given more of a hearing than the civilian victims in Vietnam and Cambodia (and their descendents). I mean its not like either of those countries suffered more (in real terms) than we did, eh?

[NickD 202]

US veterans of that war and the civilian victims in Vietnam and Cambodia were both screwed, different degrees of being screwed, but screwed no matter how you twist your words. Ross and other made millions, you just have to be on the right side of the fence.