Agent Orange victims' lawsuit trial to take place in France

On the morning of April 9, the Central Committee of the Vietnam Association for Victims of Agent Orange/Dioxin held a press conference on the lawsuit of Ms. Tran To Nga (a French citizen of Vietnamese origin) against American chemical companies. Senior Lieutenant General Nguyen Van Rinh, Chairman of the Association, chaired the press conference.

Regarding the lawsuit, Senior Lieutenant General Nguyen Van Rinh said that on April 16, 2015, the Evry City Court in the Paris region (France) will hear the lawsuit of Ms. Tran To Nga (a French citizen of Vietnamese origin), a victim of Agent Orange/dioxin, suing American chemical companies that participated in the production and supply of toxic chemicals to the US military during the war in Vietnam.

Senior Lieutenant General Nguyen Van Rinh announced some information surrounding the lawsuit of Ms. Tran To Nga (Photo: KS)

Ms. Tran To Nga was a war correspondent for the Liberation News Agency (now the Vietnam News Agency) when the war against the US in Vietnam entered its fiercest phase. From 1966, she began to be exposed to toxic chemicals due to living and working in the areas most heavily sprayed with toxic chemicals in the South such as Cu Chi, Binh Long, the Ho Chi Minh trail... Ms. Nga gave birth to 3 children, of which the eldest died of a heart defect, and the second daughter was infected with a blood disease from her.

To demand justice for the families and victims of Agent Orange/dioxin in Vietnam as well as around the world, in 2009, Ms. Nga was a witness at the Public Opinion Court in Paris against American chemical companies. In May 2014, she was assisted by the William Bourdon Forestier law firm in Paris, France, and became the plaintiff in a lawsuit against 26 American chemical companies that played a role in manufacturing and supplying weapons to the US military that used toxic chemicals during the war in Vietnam. After accepting the case, the Evry City Court in the Paris region (France) announced that it would hold the first hearing on April 16. Currently, 12 American chemical companies have hired lawyers to defend them in court.

At the press conference, the representative of the Vietnam Association of Victims of Agent Orange/Dioxin answered a number of questions surrounding the lawsuit. Regarding the role of the Association in this lawsuit, Senior Lieutenant General Nguyen Van Rinh, President of the Vietnam Association of Victims of Agent Orange/Dioxin, said: Throughout the lawsuit, the Association has wholeheartedly supported Ms. Tran To Nga, helping her conduct tests on the consequences of Agent Orange/Dioxin contamination at a laboratory in Germany. In addition, the Association has also coordinated and worked with the Bourdon Law Office to resolve legal issues, regarding the subjects of American chemical companies...

Responding to the legality of the lawsuit, the representative of the Vietnam Association of Victims of Agent Orange/Dioxin emphasized: Currently, the French Government has a law allowing French lawyers to defend French citizens who have been harmed abroad by foreigners. Therefore, the case of Ms. Tran To Nga is completely legal. "In addition, this lawsuit is currently being supported and assisted by many lawyers; French non-governmental organizations and especially the Vietnamese Association in France both materially and spiritually. Therefore, I believe that the interests of Vietnamese Agent Orange victims in particular and the world in general will be protected by justice. If this lawsuit is successful, it will be a very favorable premise for us to continue the path of seeking justice for millions of other Agent Orange victims in Vietnam," Mr. Rinh emphasized.

Also at the press conference, the Vietnam Association of Victims of Agent Orange/Dioxin announced an open letter to the Evry City Court in the Paris region and the lawyers involved in the lawsuit of Ms. Tran To Nga. The letter calls on the Evry City Court in the Paris region of France to quickly consolidate and complete the procedural documents to try the case, defending the rights of Ms. Tran To Nga - a victim of Agent Orange. At the same time, it calls on American chemical companies to take responsibility and make more efforts to join the Government and people of Vietnam in providing comprehensive and meaningful assistance to Agent Orange victims as well as their families./.

According to the Communist Party of Vietnam