French locality supports Vietnamese AO victims
(VOV) - The Committee for the Van Canh Friendship Village (CVCFV) in Essonne province, on the outskirts of Paris, held “Vietnam Day” on March 1 to raise money for Vietnamese Agent Orange victims.
Traditional Vietnamese handicrafts, such as lacquer paintings, bamboo and embroidery products were sold as a fundraiser for the building of a swimming pool at the Van Canh Friendship Village in Vietnam.
The organizing board put together an exhibition of pictures and articles reflecting the US army spraying harmful dioxin chemicals into central, central highlands and southern regions of Vietnam.
A documentary film on the US army’s war crimes with sorrow images of AO victims in Vietnam was also screened
Raphael Vahe, President of the French CVCFV and President of the French Republic's Association of War Veterans and Victims (ARAC) described the building of Van Canh Friendship Village as a symbol of friendship, reconciliation and cooperation and a practical way to deal with the devastating aftermath of war in Vietnam.
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The Vietnam Friendship Village project was formed and based on an International Committee VCFV and other committees associated with VCFV in the US, France, Germany, Japan, the UK, Canada and Vietnam.
The Friendship Village was built in Van Canh village, Hanoi in 1998 and serves as a hospital and school caring for around 60 war veterans and 120 children of AO victims.
During “Vietnam Day”, French historian Alain Ruscio presented a report on President Ho Chi Minh and the Vietnamese people who defeated two powerful imperialists – France and the US.
Denise Henry, a member of CVCFV, said many such committees have been established in French regions aiming to launch regular activities and events as fundraising campaigns for AO victims in Vietnam.