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Wartime compensation issue may surface with Clinton visit

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October 24, 2000 

HANOI (AP) - Wartime compensation over the lingering effects of Agent Orange is likely to arise during U.S. President Bill Clinton's visit to Vietnam next month, Vietnamese media reported Monday.

At an international lawyers conference in Havana, Cuba, last week, Vietnam led the call for a legal campaign demanding that the United States compensate Vietnam for the effects of toxic defoliants used during the war, the official English-language Vietnam News reported.

Luu Van Dat, head of the Vietnamese delegation and secretary-general of the Vietnam Lawyers Association, urged the United States to help Vietnam overcome the negative impacts of the defoliant Agent Orange, and compensate Vietnamese who suffer health problems from it, the paper said.

Vietnam claims more than 1 million of its 76 million people were affected.

Officially, Vietnam's government has never pressed for compensation as the two countries embarked on a process of slow rapprochement - starting with establishment of diplomatic ties in 1995 and capped by the signing of a trade deal in July that still needs legislative approval in both countries.

But the issue of compensation for the war that ended 25 years ago will probably be brought up as Vietnam seeks to deflect anticipated criticism of its poor human rights record during Clinton's trip.

Vietnam is routinely criticized by international human rights organizations for its repressive tactics in silencing political and religious expression.

Last week, five senior U.S. senators - including Vietnam veterans John McCain and Charles Robb - sent a letter to Clinton urging him to press for "significant, realistic and tangible progress in human rights" with Vietnam's leaders during his trip.

Vietnam is routinely criticized by international human rights organizations for its repressive tactics in silencing political and religious expression.

While giving Vietnam credit for making some progress, the senators say the country's overall record "remains a source of major concern."

Stating that freedoms of expression, association and religion continue to be restricted, the senators wrote that "the silencing of government critics is a sad testimony to the ongoing repression in Vietnam today."

Bristling, Vietnam's Foreign Ministry said in a statement released late Monday that "Vietnam is determined to absolutely protest the acts of interference into its internal affairs, which does not contribute to promotion of bilateral relations."

The criticism "does not reflect the reality in Vietnam and is contrary to the plans and interests of improving relations between the two countries," the statement said.