An article posted by the Junge Welt newspaper on May 11 reported that Nga, who worked as a reporter of the Liberation News Agency(which is Vietnam News Agency now) during the anti-US war, was exposed to AgentOrange/dioxin sprayed by the US army, which caused many diseases to her and her children.
The article quoted Nga as saying in an online talk last week that whatever theruling of the court is, she will continue the struggle for justice that has been conducted for over10 years. She affirmed that she is ready to pursue thelawsuit.
At the talk, Ton Nu Thi Ninh, Vice President of the VietnamPeace Committee, said that it is necessary to stay persistent as the objectivesof the lawsuit is not merely to claim compensation but also make the US toacknowledge and bear their responsibility.
The article said that the US military sprayed more than 80 million litres of toxic chemicals across the south of Vietnam to destroy forest which wasthe shefter of those who fought for their nation’s independence. The chemicals alsodestroyed the crop of Vietnamese farmers, and caused horrible consequences that more than 4 million Vietnamese people are suffering serious health problems. The article noted that while refusing to compensate victims in Vietnam, the US has paid compensation to US veterans exposed to AO/dioxin during the war inVietnam.
Like Nga, her children, including a daughter died whenshe was just 17 months old, suffer from typical diseases caused by AO/dioxin such asdiabetes, heart diseases and asthma.A laboratory in Germany has confirmed that the cause is high contamination ofdioxin in their blood. However, the producers of the toxic chemicals have rejectedtheir responsibilities, it noted.
The author commented that the court in Evry tended to protectthe producers of the chemicals when ruling that the case fell outside itsjurisdiction.
Meanwhile, the pain of AO/dioxin victims continues as thetoxic chemical has contaiminated soil for dozens of years, staying in victims’bodies and modifying there genes, stressed the author.
Other newspapers such as Spiegeland Focus, also ran stories highlighting the fight for justice of Nga,underlining that if she did not take the case to the court, the tragedy ofvictims will forever be buried under the dust of the past.
Nga, 79, accuses 14 multinational chemical companies,including herbicide manufacturer Monsanto (now under the Bayer Group ofGermany), of supplying the herbicide and defoliant chemical - Agent Orange(AO)/dioxin, which was used extensively by the US army between 1961-1971 inVietnam, causing serious consequences for 4 million people and severelypoisoning the environment.
The woman, also an AO victim, has pursued the lawsuit for over a decade. After the ruling on May 10, Nga said she will appealimmediately, kicking off a new journey no matter how difficult it will be.
She emphasised that she will be at the forefront of a marchin Paris on May 15 to oppose Monsanto and reiterate the lawsuit./.