The Ho Chi Minh City Association of Agent Orange Victims on August 2 launched a week called “For Agent Orange/ Dioxin Victims” with a photo exhibition.

The 200-photo exhibition depicts the plight of Vietnamese AO victims who suffer from diseases caused by the toxic chemical sprayed by the US troops during the war.

The association will collaborate with the HCM City Red Cross Society to organise a walk for AO victims on August 9.

On August 10, it will organise a music programme, an auction of three paintings to raise funds and a ceremony to present scholarships and capital for poor families of AO victims.

A fund raising and signature collection ceremony to support the AO victims will also be held on this occasion.

Statistics released by the Vietnam Association of Victims of Agent Orange (VAVA) show that around 4.8 million Vietnamese people have been exposed to AO/dioxin, of whom 3 million have been confirmed as being directly affected by the toxic chemical.

During the 1961-1971 period, the US troops sprayed 80 million litres of defoliant which contained nearly 400 kg of dioxin on Vietnam’s southern battlefields.

Source: VNA