Vietnam expresses regret about dioxin lawsuit ruling in France
VOV.VN - Vietnam regrets that the Paris Court of Appeals on August 22 rejected Vietnamese French dioxin victim Tran To Nga’s petition to sue 14 companies that supplied Agent Orange/dioxin for spray during the American waged war in Vietnam.
“We strongly support the victims of Agent Orange/dioxin to demand that the firms that produced and supplied these toxic chemicals to the US military during the war in Vietnam, causing millions of Vietnamese people to become victims, bear responsibility for the consequences,” said Foreign Ministry spokesperson Pham Thu Hang said at a press briefing on August 22.
“Though the war is over, the severe consequences still have a profound impact on the country and people of Vietnam, including the long-term and serious consequences of Agent Orange/dioxin,” said the spokesperson.
Tran To Nga, 82, lodged an appeal against Bayer-Monsanto and 13 other firms that produced or marketed Agent Orange/dioxin used by the US military during the war in Vietnam between 1961-1971.
In 2021 the Evry first instance court in France rejected Nga’s suit, ruling that the firms had enough grounds to use ‘immunity’ because they acted at the request of the US government.
During the May 7, 2024 hearing, the Paris Court of Appeals did not rule on the case after the lawyers of the chemical firms completely denied their clients’ responsibility, asserting that they only complied with the technical requirements of the US military during wartime.
Tran To Nga is one of more than three million Vietnamese victims who suffered the consequences of Agent Orange/dioxin. She has spent more than 10 years demanding justice for the victims, including six years of pursuing the lawsuit.
When she filed the lawsuit, there were more than 3 million victims of Agent Orange in Vietnam. After 12 years, the number of the victims has reached more than 4 million belonging to second, third and fourth generations.
