The lawsuit was lodged against a number of US chemical companies that manufactured the deadly dioxin for the US army to use during the war in Vietnam. However, the lawsuit was rejected by the US Court of Appeals.

“If the petition is approved, VAVA may then lodge an appeal to the US Supreme Court in line with US laws,” said Dr. Tran Xuan Thu, VAVA Vice President and General Secretary.

The 41-page petition argues that verdicts made by the US Hearings Court and then upheld by the US Court of Appeals were not in accordance with US legal procedures. It says the verdicts were based on trivial objections and aimed at denying the truth of the harmful effects of dioxin. The petition points out the fallacy in saying that chemical substances produced by a number of US companies for US soldiers to use during the war in Vietnam were herbicides and were not known to be toxic to humans.

The verdict reached by the US Court of Appeals said that the US did not intend to affect humans when spraying the toxic chemicals, and that the resulting dioxin pollution was an unintended consequence after using these chemicals.

According to the petition, the use of Agent Orange, which contains high levels of dioxin, violates international practices banning the use of toxic substances against humans.

Following the submission of the petition, a press briefing is scheduled to be held in front of the US Supreme Court in New York by Johnathan Moore, a member of the team of lawyers representing VAVA - the petitioner, Mike Marceau, deputy president of US Veterans for Peace and two Vietnamese AO victims, Dang Hong Nhut and Tran Thi Hoan.

“If the Supreme Court does not accept the petition, it is still possible for Vietnamese Agent Orange victims to continue the lawsuit at courts in 11 other areas in the US as the US Supreme Court’s rejection is valid only in area No2, where the petition is being submitted,” said lawyer Luu Van Dat, a member of VAVA Executive Board.