Standing One’s Ground… In the Sea

Tensions have been flaring between the Philippines and China over a topic we know all too well: sovereignty in the Southeast Asia Sea.  As China continues to pursue its rapacious claims over the entire sea in Southeast Asia, one country has stepped up to challenge the Asian giant’s “indisputable” claims of “indisputable” sovereignty, which, along with every other claim China is making, are “indisputable.”  This gutsy contestation comes from China’s little neighbor to the east, the Philippines.

The incident began in early April, when Filippino authorities spotted eight Chinese naval vessels stationed near the Philippines’ Scarborough Shoal.  What followed was a four day standoff between the Philippines and China near Filippino territory, from the identification of the Chinese ships on 6 April 2012, to the near detainment of these vessels on 10 April 2012.  To this day, the diplomatic crisis between China and the Philippines remains unresolved, as neither country shows any sign of backing down.

China’s government and state-run media agencies continue to threaten the Philippines with economic and military retribution if the country continues to resist the assertions of the PRC.  China has increased, and continues to increase, the number of military vessels deployed near the disputed Scarborough islands, which the Chinese call Huangyan.  Tourism from China to the Philippines have been blocked, and the Chinese Embassy in Manila continues to accuse the Philippines of violating China’s “indisputable” sovereignty.

Meanwhile, the Filippino people have gathered in protest outside of the Chinese embassy, sending their message to the Chinese government.  They carry with them signs saying “Stop Chinese Aggression Now!”, “China Back Off!”, and the like.  The Philippines government has also taken a tough stance against the PRC, standing by their people in the face of Chinese aggression.  The country has made military purchases in preparation of armed conflict with the PRC.  Weapons have been purchased from the U.S., with further transactions planned with Japan and South Korea.

Even with these new military expenditures however, the Philippines will still be no match for China in terms of military capability.  The People’s Republic of China exponentially dwarfs the Philippines in military spending.  Materially, the Philippines does not stand a chance against China, the giant to the west.  That being said, the Philippines has taken the necessary steps to defend the rights of their people.  Though they are outclassed and outnumbered, the Philippines refuse to bow down to the demands of a foreign bully, putting them leaps and bounds above the Communists in Vietnam.

Unlike the Communists in Vietnam, who refuse to stand up to the terrorist activities of the Chinese navy, the Philippines is not afraid to speak out.  When the Chinese military kidnapped and terrorized the fishermen of Vietnam, the VCP remained silent on the matter for months at a time.  Any attempt by the people of Vietnam to stand up for their fellow Vietnamese were met with heavy repression by the Communist Party in Vietnam.  Even the brief protests permitted by the Vietnamese government last summer have been quashed for fear of a vengeful PRC.  Put simply, Filippino President Benigno Aquino has resoundingly accomplished what Nguyen Tan Dung was too cowardly to follow though with.

China may be stronger than the Philippines for the time being, but the Philippines has the world on its side.  The Filippino people are fully in support of their government in defence against China, and continue to do so with no hesitation.  Furthermore, the basis of the Philippines arguments are based on international law, which follow the guidelines of the international community.  China’s rebuttal of “indisputable” historical claims remain to be proven, with the recurring term “indisputable” as their only source of defence.  As long as the Philippines stays firm in defence of its people, China will have a very difficult time in Southeast Asia.

Southern Heroes: Le Minh Dao, The 18th Division, and the Battle of Xuan Loc

“Please, do not call me a hero.  My men who died at Xuan Loc and the hundred battles before are the true heroes.”  – Le Minh Dao, Brigadier General, 18th Division, South Vietnam

On this day, 37 years ago, the tanks of the North Vietnamese Army rolled into the city of Saigon.  The city’s inhabitants gathered frantically outside the gates of the U.S. embassy, begging the Americans to shelter them from the advancing Communists.  That day, thousands of Vietnamese families packed up their entire lives and embarked on a journey across the seas to escape the grasp of Communism.  April 30, 1975 was a dark day in Vietnam’s history, but prior to this fall, the South Vietnamese Army would achieve one last glorious victory.

In the weeks prior to the fall of Saigon, the Communists in the North were still figuring out how to capture the city.  One strategically important location was Xuan Loc, which the Communists planned to capture before moving on to Saigon.  As the 4th Corps of the North Vietnamese Army assembled their forces in the jungle north of the city of Xuan Loc, they were greeted by some unexpected guests.  The 18th Division of the ARVN (South Vietnam), under Brig. General Le Minh Dao, would derail the NVA’s plan to capture Xuan Loc, showing the world that even without the U.S., the ARVN was still a force to be reckoned with.

“Even though we knew we had lost the war, I still fought.  I was filled with despair after the loss of the northern Corps, but I still fight.”

The Battle of Xuan Loc was the last major struggle before Saigon’s fall on April 30, 1975.  With the passionate and inspirational leadership of Brigadier General Le Minh Dao, the 18th Division of the ARVN resisted heavy fire from the Communist forces from April 9-21, when the division was recalled to defend Saigon.  The brilliance of the 18th Division can be seen by its numbers, dealing a miserable amount of pain to the 4th Corps of the NVA.  On the first day of battle, the NVA under Major General Hoang Cam lost more than 700 hundred men to the ARVN and Le Minh Dao, whose losses were below 50 soldiers.  After four days, Cam’s death toll climbed to 2,000, while Dao’s still only in the hundreds, the 4th Corps still had not advanced (Pribbenow & Vieth, 2004: 191-199).

By April 13, the 4th Corps and the North Vietnamese Army were forced to change their strategy.  According to NVA Commander Tran Van Tra, because of the fierce resistance of General Dao and the 18th Division, it was no longer in the interests of the NVA to continue pressing in Xuan Loc (Pribbenow & Vieth, 2004: 200).  From then until April 21, the Communist forces would concentrate their forces in other areas around Xuan Loc, and Le Minh Dao would continue to fight them until receiving orders to return to Saigon.  The general’s retreat was just as masterful as his advance, which required much daring and intellect to outmaneuver the Communist forces.

“I was their general, I wish to be the last man from the 18th ARVN to be released.  I could not look them in the face otherwise.”

Sadly, the success story ends here, with Le Minh Dao’s successful retreat back to Saigon.  From this point onward, South Vietnam would run out of steam, and the ARVN would no longer have the means to fight.  Brigadier General Le Minh Dao and the 18th Division were only few of many brave individuals who sacrificed their lives for the free and democratic South.  On April 30th, even after Duong Van Minh and the Southern government surrendered, Le Minh Dao still wanted to keep fighting.  However, with the knowledge that the corps commander and the deputy had taken their own lives, Dao knew that it was done.  On May 9, Le Minh Dao turned himself over to the Communist forces, serving a prison sentence of 17 years.  He would remain in prison until May 4, 1992, when he was finally released.  Le Minh Dao currently resides in the United States, his accomplishments forever immortalized in the pages of history.

 

Further Reading on the Battle of Xuan Loc:

Pribbenow, Merle L. & George J. Veith.  ”Fighting is an Art: The Army of the Republic of Vietnam’s Defense of Xuan Loc, 9-21 April 1975.”  The Journal of Military History, Vol. 68, No. 1 (Jan., 2004), pp. 163-213.

The White House Listens

For those of you who were disappointed about Mr. Truc Ho’s trip to Washington, here is some very good news that may raise your spirits.  If you are among the many who signed the “We, the People” petition started by Truc Ho, chances are you have recently received an email of acknowledgement from the White House.  If you did not sign the petition, or if for some reason you never received the email, the contents are as follows:

Petition Response:

Pursuing Progress on Human Rights with Vietnam

By Michael Posner, Assistant Secretary for Democracy, Human Rights and Labor at Department of State

I would like to thank all of you who signed this petition underscoring Americans’ concern for human rights in Vietnam and the United States-Vietnam relationship. As our dialogue with Vietnam evolves, we are especially cognizant of the views of the Vietnamese community in the U.S.

The United States will remain diligent in pursuing progress on human rights in our high-level engagement as we pursue a wide array of security, economic, and strategic interests with Vietnam. In our discussions with the Vietnamese government, we emphasize that progress on human rights, including the release of political prisoners and freedom of religion, is a necessary part of improving United States-Vietnam relations. Secretary of State Clinton raised our human rights concerns with President Sang when they met at the November 2011 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting in Honolulu, Hawaii. U.S. Ambassador to Vietnam David Shear has raised similar concerns in all of his high-level meetings since arriving in Vietnam last August, and he and the Mission regularly engage Vietnamese government officials, nongovernmental organizations, and other individuals as part of our Government’s commitment to promote greater respect for human rights in Vietnam.

During the annual United States-Vietnam Human Rights Dialogue meeting in November, I, along with Ambassador-At-Large for International Religious Freedom Suzan Johnson Cook and other high-level officials, urged Vietnam to release all political prisoners, strengthen religious freedom, ratify and implement the Convention Against Torture, and take other steps to protect and promote universal human rights.

My colleague, Kurt Campbell, Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, underscored these concerns directly with Vietnamese officials during his most recent visit to Hanoi on February 2. Read a transcript of his press conference in Hanoi here (PDF).

In addition, our engagement with Vietnam on trade, including through its interest in the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) and its participation in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations, has provided opportunities to raise these issues. Both GSP and TPP include commitments to labor rights protections, including freedom of association.

The Obama Administration is committed to an ongoing dialogue with the Vietnamese American community. On March 5, 2012, my colleagues and I participated in a briefing held by the White House Office of Public Engagement for 165 Vietnamese Americans from 30 states who work across diaspora communities in order to promote human rights, global partnerships, and opportunities for Vietnamese abroad. During the meeting, we stressed that human rights issues are a key component of ongoing discussions with Vietnam and that the United States continuously engages Vietnam on human rights through many different channels, including the annual United States-Vietnam Human Rights Dialogue.

I encourage everyone involved in this petition to continue to express your views and concerns to the Administration, and most importantly to the Vietnamese government. I also encourage you to follow our work on http://www.humanrights.gov. (Also, see the State Department’s 2010 Human Rights Report for Vietnam and the latest International Religious Freedom Report for Vietnam).

We look forward to meaningful dialogue and partnerships with your community in the future.

Check out this response on We the People.

Stay Connected

Stay connected to the White House by signing up for periodic email updates from President Obama and other senior administration officials.

Alas!  President Obama and the White House has been listening after all.  The contents of this document declares that the U.S. government and the Obama Administration is committed to promoting and protecting human rights.  Everyone is encouraged by the White House to continue to voice their opinions, both to the U.S. and the Vietnamese government.  This goes to show that when we work together and show that we are united, great things can happen.  To everyone in this struggle for freedom, your efforts have not been in vein.  Keep persisting, keep believing, because nothing meaningful ever comes easy.

The Voice and The Vote

It’s been a while since we’ve heard of Viet Khang’s whereabouts, no one really knows what happened to him.  What we do know is that he has not been freed by the Communist government.  Whether he is still alive or not is also a big question, one that probably won’t be answered for a while, if ever.  However, that is no reason for us to feel hopeless or discouraged.  Brother Viet Khang knew full well what he was getting into, and I am sure that he did not sacrifice himself just to see us fall into despair.

Through a collection of courageous acts, Viet Khang was able to capture the attention of the entire world.  With the help of Mr. Truc Ho, Viet Khang’s music has shown the world the sad way of life that the Vietnamese people are faced with every single day.  Viet Khang painted the crimes of the Communist Party, making it crystal clear to every Vietnamese across the world.

Before Viet Khang, only a handful young Vietnamese oversees knew about the atrocities committed by the Communist Party.  Now, Vietnamese people across the continents, young and old alike, are now conscious of the dire situation that the Party has put the country into.  As young Vietnamese living oversees, what can we do about it?  As individuals who are shut out from the Communist system, it may feel like we are powerless in dealing with the Communist Party.  This however, is a misconception.

As citizens of a free and democratic country, young adults like yourselves have something that is extremelt valuable.  That gift, my friends, is the right to vote.  As explained very eloquently by Mr. Truc Ho, election season is coming up, and the presidential candidates will do whatever they can to acquire the most votes.  This means that they will be more than happy to appeal to all types of social groups across the country, and as Vietnamese living in America, you too can be a part of this.

It is true that Mr. Truc Ho did not meet the president on his visit to Washington, but the fact remains that he was invited to the White House.  Because of his hard work and genuine dedication, Mr. Truc Ho had captured the attention of the White House.  Besides human rights, there is a very prevalent reason that Truc Ho was invited to Washington.  By rallying nearly 150,000 signatures to his petition, Truc Ho has shown that there is a strong group of potential voters out there.  If there is one thing that a politician loves, it’s the vote.

There are millions of Vietnamese adults living in the U.S., and as American citizens, we all have the vote.  If we show the politicians that we are united, they will listen to what we have to say.  It does not have to be Barack Obama that we are calling upon.  If our voice is strong enough, other candidates will come to us, instead of the other way around.  It is not out of the question for Governor Mitt Romney to throw is support behind us if we are willing to reciprocate with our votes.

Whether it be the Democratic Party or the Republican Party, it could not matter less.  When the presidential candidates realize that there are a million of us, united in our cause, and united in our vote, it will only be a matter of time before they offer their support to us.  Mr. Truc Ho has a very clear vision, and he communicates it very well.  If you want to hear more about this campaign, watch Truc Ho’s SBTN program, for he has much to teach us.

One final word, and this involves all of us.  Whether you are young or old, whether you partake in the democratic process or not (let’s be honest, I know not all of you vote), just be proud of who you are and where you are from.  Before we even exercise our democratic rights, just remember that we are Vietnamese, and that we take pride in our culture and our heritage.  It is undeniable that we are proud of our homeland, whether it be America, Canada, Britain, France, Germany, or anywhere else in the world.  That being said, don’t forget that we are also Vietnamese, our parents are Vietnamese, and our grandparents are Vietnamese.  We must be proud of that as well.  One love.

Truc Ho’s Dedication and the Trip to Washington

This past Monday, Vietnamese musical producer and democracy activist Truc Ho flew to Washington D.C., hoping to meet with the President of the United States.  Mr. Truc has been looking forward to this day, campaigning non-stop over the case of the imprisoned musician Viet Khang.  However, upon his arrival at the White House, Mr. Truc was not greeted by the President, or even a representive on his behalf.  What followed instead were a series of confusing events which many are still trying to understand.

The full details of what happened at the White House is still unclear, the only certainty is that there was miscommunication, on many fronts.  According to sources, Mr. Truc was expected at the White House, but his hosts were unclear on who they were meeting.  The officials at the White House had organized a conference briefing on the leaders of the Vietnamese youth, thinking that Truc Ho was a leader of this group.  When Truc Ho arrived in the conference room, he thought he was in the wrong place.  To his surprise, this room was meant for him.

When it became clear that the White House officials had made a mistake, Truc Ho had to explain to them that he was not a leader of the Vietnamese youth.  He was simply a democracy activist trying to raise the issue of human rights in Vietnam to the U.S. government.  After this disappointing ordeal, Mr. Truc Ho departed from the White House and proceeded outside to his many supporters at the White House entrance.  Many of Truc Ho’s supporters had made the trip to Wasington with him, showing that they are behind him 100%.

In the end, Mr. Truc Ho did not meet President Obama, though he was contacted by the White House at the beginning.  Even so, this event should not be labelled as a failure.  Because of his efforts, Truc Ho was able to spread awareness across the globe about the human rights abuses in Vietnam.  Not only did he capture the attention of the Vietnamese in the United States, but in many other countries all over the world.  In 30 short days, Truc Ho’s petition had achieved 149,050 signatures!  Thanks to him, citizens in America, Canada, Australia, France, and many other nations know of Viet Khang and Vietnam’s desperate need for change.

This struggle for freedom and democracy in Vietnam is not a one step process.  It is long and difficult, with many challenges and obstacles along the way.  The belief that President Barack Obama was going fix all of Vietnam’s problems was simply too good to be true.  Truc Ho may not have met with the President, but his movement was a success.  I commend Mr. Truc Ho, along with his team over at SBTN for all of their hard work.  Thanks to them, the Vietnamese across the world are united.  Not only that, but the people in Vietnam now know we are out there, and that we stand behind them no matter what.  This is not the end, people, this is only the beginning.  Freedom for Vietnam.

The President Listens

Great news, people!  As of this moment, the human rights petition established by Truc Ho has achieved more than 70,000 signatures!  Furthermore, the success of the petition has captured the attention of a very important individual.  Barack Obama, the President of the United States of America, has answered the calls of the people.  According to SBTN, President Obama is very interested in the petition, and even more interested in the music of Viet Khang.

In the coming weeks, March 5, 2012, Mr. Truc Ho will be meeting President Obama in Washington to discuss the circumstances of Viet Khang, as well as the broader human rights situation in Vietnam.  It is also the wishes of President Obama to listen to Viet Khang’s songs, “Viet Nam Toi Dau (Where’s My Vietnam)?” and “Anh La Ai (Who Are You)?”.  The President wants to understand the words of Viet Khang, to see how the musician has been captivating so many people across the world.

This is a result of Mr. Truc’s hard work and dedication, as he has been advertising and campaigning endlessly on behalf of the imprisoned musician.  At this point in time, the We, the People petition has gained over 70,000 signatures, shattering the minimum threshold of 25,000 signatures.  This is a major accomplishment, but one would be wrong to assume that it is enough.

We may have surpassed the threshold of 25,000, but this is only the beginning, as there is still much work to do.  According to Truc Ho, and it should be obvious to all of us, the power of a petition lies in its signatures.  If we achieve 25,000, which we did, the president will be answering the calls of 25,000 people.  However, if we achieve 100,000 signatures, the president would be responding to 100,000 people! Now imagine 250,000 people, how powerful our voice would be then?

As citizens of democracy, we have the power to make our voices heard by our leaders.  The fact that President Obama, the most powerful man in the world, has taken the time to look over this petition, clearly demonstrates how important our voice is to him.  As autonomous individuals, we don’t all have money and we don’t all have corporate muscle.  What we do have however, all of us, is the vote.  If you think that your voice does not matter to the government, please think again.  You all have the power to make a change, and many of you have already done so much.  Thank you, now let’s keep going!

Help Spread the Word, Sign the Petition!

If you haven’t heard yet, there is a petition out there right now, urging the White House to press Vietnam harder on human rights.  This is a direct response to the “Free Viet Khang” movement, aiming to spread awareness of how brutal and corrupted the Communist regime in Vietnam is.  If you support the human rights movement, and would like to contribute to the cause, please sign this petition.

All you have to do is click on the link below and follow a few simple steps.  I assure you, this will only take you three minutes, if that.  The petition needs 25,000 signatures by March 8, 2012, for the White House to seriously consider it.  At this point in time, the petition is making great progress, but you too can help by donating a few minutes of your time. Support the basic freedoms, support human rights!

To sign the petition, click here!

https://wwws.whitehouse.gov/petitions#!/petition/stop-expanding-trade-vietnam-expense-human-rights/53PQRDZH