The devastating legacy of the orange agent is still in force in Vietnam 50 years later

The Vietnam War ended on April 30, 1975When Saigon, the capital of South Vietnam, fell into the hands of the communist forces. But millions of people continue to fight daily against their chemical inheritance.

Nguyen Thanh Hai, 34, Is one of the millions of disabled relating to the orange agent. Born with serious development problems, It is very difficult to do your homework That others take it for granted: to falsify their blue shirt that leads to a special school in Da Nang, practice the alphabet, draw for shapes or form simple sentences.

You grew up in Da Nangwhere there was an American air base in which the troops left left enormous quantities of orange agent who remained for decades, Filtering in food and areas of the areas Like the people of you and affect generations of residents.

Throughout Vietnam, US forces sprayed 72 million liters of deflective During the war to eliminate coverage of the enemy. More than half was Orange agent, a mixture of herbicides with dioxinA chemical substance associated with healthy health problems and environmental damage.

Currently, Three million peopleincluding many children, They are still suffering serious health problems associated with the exposure to this product. Vietnam has cleaned the toxic legacy of the war, partially financed by the late American help, but the work is far from the ending.

Now, Millions of people in Vietnam fear the United States Leave the cleaning of the orange agent while President Donald Trump cuts foreign aid.

Decades of pollution

When the war ended, The United States turned their backs to VietnamEager to transform the page towards a painful chapter of its history. But Vietnam remained with dozens of dioxin spotlights Distributed by 58 of its 63 provinces.

Vietnam states that the effects of the health of the latest generations threaten children, grandchildren and even large grandchildren of exposed people Chemicals with health complications ranging from cancer to congenital defects that affect the spine and the nervous system. But science on the impact on human health, both for those exposed to Orange Agent as regards subsequent generations, is still uncertain.

This is part that when the two countries started working together in 2006, they focused Find dioxins in the environment and eliminate themInstead of studying the still controversial question of its impact on human health, said Charles Bailey, co -author of the book “From enemies to partners: Vietnam, the United States and the agent Orange”. “The science of causality is still incomplete,” Bailey said.

Mass cleaning begins

In the Decades after the end of the warThe in recovery country has evaluated very contaminated places, such as Da Nang airport, and started helping affected families.

But the United States have significantly ignored the growing tests Of health repercussions, also in his veteran, until mid -2000, when he began to finance the cleaning of Vietnam.

In 1991, the United States website recognized that some diseases could be related to exposure to the orange agent and veterans This suffered them had the right to benefits.

Since 1991, he has spent over 155 million dollars (144 million euros) to help people with disabilities in the areas concerned by the orange or sown agent without exploiting, according to the United States Department of State.

The cleaning of the orange agent is already expensive already dangerous. The very polluted land must be discovered And the heat in large ovens at very high temperatures, while the less contaminated land can be buried in safe landfills. You still have to clean large earth extensions in Vietnam.

Anxiety for help cuts

But Trump’s cuts to funding From the American aid they paralyzed key projects in Vietnam and although many have resumed, doubts persist Speaking of reliability in the United States.

ADVERTISING

Vietnam cannot manage chemicals Toxic that still persist without help, said Nguyen Van An, president of the association of the victims of the orange agent in Danang. “We have always believed that the United States government And the producers of this toxic chemical must have the responsibility of supporting the victims, “he said.

Data failure means that experts They cannot say with certainty when the risk of human health will end. But the most urgent problem is that if the cleaning work is interrupted, the contaminated soil now exposed could reach the river roads and damage more people.

In 2020, a 10 -year project was launched to clean the approximately 500,000 cubic meters of land contaminated with dioxins, enough to fill 40,000 trucks, of the Hoa air base. SortHe stopped for a week in March and then resumedAlthough Bailey, the author said that the future US financing for cleaning was uncertain.

Chuck Searcy, an American veteran of the Vietnam War that has been working in humanitarian programs in the country since 1995, He said you are worried that trust has been built For years you can erode very quickly.

ADVERTISING

He stressed that those who benefit from the projects financed by the United States to face the bequests of the war are “innocent victims”. “They were victims twice, one for the war and the consequences they suffered. And now for removing the carpet from under your feet, “said Searcy.