American supporter of Vietnamese AO victims conferred friendship order

Addressing the conferring ceremony, VUFO President Nguyen Phuong Nga confirmed that this was one of the noblest awards of Vietnam for organizations and individuals who have made active contributions to the friendship between Vietnam and the world countries.

According to Ms Nga, over the past 20 years, Ms Susan Marie Hammond has done her utmost to support Vietnamese Agent Orange victims. “The projects funded by her and carried out by WLP have not only benefitted the victims but also held great significance in healing the war sorrows, especially when the assistance come from American veterans and their families,” she said.

Sharing at the ceremony, Ms Susan Marie Hammond said since 1991 with her first steps in the land of her father’s participation in the war, witnessing by her own eyes the serious post-war effects of AO, she was determined to raise public awareness of the long-lasting bad consequences caused by the toxic chemical, and seek resources for supporting Vietnamese AO victims.

She showed her pride to receive the Order of Friendship from the Vietnamese State, adding that she hoped she would continue to successfully realize the projects in Vietnam for the next 25 years.

Apart from projects carried out in Vietnamese localities such as Quang Nam, Ha Nam and Thua Thien – Hue, Ms Susan Hammond has worked with diverse journalists, photographers and film makers to develop reports and films about the influence of AO in Vietnam. She has also written books and newspaper articles about AO consequences which have been presented in many workshops and events across the US.

Additionally, she has developed and updated information and data relating to AO on http://www.agentorangerecord.com, attracting about 35,000 accesses each year from the US, Europe, Canada and Vietnam, while she is a consultant of the Ford Foundation in the US-Vietnam Dialogue Group on AO and Dioxin and the initiative on AO information in Vietnam./.