Chemical weapons wars’ open wounds ─ Vietnam to Afghanistan

U.S. helicopter spraying
Agent Orange over
Vietnamese agricultural land

Vietnam Agent Orange Relief and Responsibility Campaign Justice for all Agent Orange Victims

Excerpt, editing by Carolyn Bennett

I was listening this week to law professor Marjorie Cohn on RT’s “Breaking the Set” talking about generations-long, unrepentant damage done by U.S. chemical weapons’ wars particularly against peoples and lands of Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia (as well as on U.S veterans and their descendants) and the peoples and lands of Iraq and Afghanistan and other peoples and places.

“Wars do not end when the bombs stop falling and the fighting ceases,” says a reminder at the website of Vietnam Agent Orange Relief and Responsibility Campaign where Cohn is a member of the national board. “The devastation continues long after ─ in the land and in the minds and bodies of affected populations.”

 

Three million Vietnamese today are suffering the effects of chemical defoliants used by the United States during the Vietnam War.

In a sinister effort to deny food and protection to people deemed ‘the enemy,’ the U.S. defoliated the forests of Vietnam with the deadly chemicals Agent Orange, White, Blue, Pink, Green and Purple.

Agent Orange, contaminated with trace amounts of TCDD dioxin – the most toxic chemical known to science – disabled and sickened soldiers, civilians and several generations of their offspring on two continents.

Under international law, the U.S. government has a moral and legal obligation to compensate the people of Vietnam for the devastating impact of Agent Orange and to assist in alleviating its effects.

In the Peace Accords signed in Paris in 1973, the U.S. government led by the Richard Nixon administration promised to contribute $3 billion dollars toward healing the wounds of war and to post-war reconstruction of Vietnam. But 30 years after the end of the Vietnam War, the U. S. government has failed to make good on its formal commitment and moral obligation to assist the Vietnamese people’s recovery from the chemical warfare waged against them and their land. The U.S. government has also failed to meet its responsibility to the peoples of Laos and Cambodia, whose lands were also poisoned by the same chemical weapons.

In addition to the millions of Vietnamese still affected by this deadly poison, tens of thousands of U.S. soldiers are also affected.

It has caused birth defects in hundreds of thousands of children in Vietnam and the United States: the second and third generations of those who were exposed to Agent Orange decades ago.

Medical evidence indicates that certain cancers (e.g., soft tissue non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma), diabetes (type II); and, in children, spina bifida and other birth defects are attributable to the exposure.

The deadly mark left by Agent Orange on the natural environment of Vietnam includes the destruction of mangrove forests and the long-term poisoning of soil and crops.

Iraqis' birth defects
post-U.S. war

Iraqis' babies
post-U.S. war

U.S. veteran survivors of Agent Orange have, after many years of organized action, finally achieved limited compensation from the U.S. government for some of their illnesses resulting from a residue to Agent Orange poisoning.

The three million surviving Vietnamese victims have received no such compensation or any humanitarian aid from the U.S. government.

Chemical weapons

The U.S. government has continued to use chemical weapons, including depleted uranium and napalm, in Iraq and other places.

The Vietnam Agent Orange Relief and Responsibility Campaign’s actions while focusing on achieving justice for the Vietnamese victims of Agent Orange are also part of an on-going international campaign to end the use of toxic weapons and to achieve justice and accountability for all victims.

The Vietnam Agent Orange Relief and Responsibility Campaign is an initiative of U.S. veterans, Vietnamese Americans and all concerned about peace and justice. Vietnamese citizens have filed a lawsuit to hold the chemical companies responsible for the crimes against humanity of which their products were a part.

H.R. 2519

PROPOSED: Victims of Agent Orange Relief Act of 2013, H.R. 2519,

The United States “has a responsibility to heal the wounds of war. Because Vietnamese people, Vietnamese Americans, and the children of U.S. veterans … have yet to receive meaningful help from the U.S. government … support the Agent Orange Relief Act of 2013 to:

Provide medical assistance and disability benefits to affected children of American Vietnam veterans

Provide health care and social services for affected Vietnamese

Provide health care for affected Vietnamese Americans and their offspring, and

Clean up the lands and restore eco-systems contaminated by Agent Orange/dioxin in Vietnam.

The Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) 

Data updated October 2010/2012

The Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) is a multilateral treaty that bans chemical weapons and requires their destruction within a specified period of time. The treaty is of unlimited duration and is far more comprehensive than the 1925 Geneva Protocol, which outlaws the use but not the possession of chemical weapons.

CWC negotiations started in 1980 in the UN Conference on Disarmament. The convention opened for signature on January 13, 1993, and entered into force on April 29, 1997.

The CWC is implemented by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), which is headquartered in The Hague with about 500 employees. The OPCW receives states-parties’ declarations detailing chemical weapons-related activities or materials and relevant industrial activities. After receiving declarations, the OPCW inspects and monitors states-parties’ facilities and activities that are relevant to the convention to ensure compliance. 

The CWC is open to all nations and currently has 188 states-parties.
 Two signatories—Israel and Myanmar—have yet to ratify the convention.
 Key non-signatories include North Korea and Syria; Egypt also has not signed the accord.
 

Prohibitions: The Chemical Weapons Convention prohibits:

Developing, producing, acquiring, stockpiling, or retaining chemical weapons.

The direct or indirect transfer of chemical weapons.

Chemical weapons use or military preparation for use.

Assisting, encouraging, or inducing other states to engage in CWC-prohibited activity.

The use of riot control agents ‘as a method of warfare.’

  

Possessor States’ Category I Destruction Implementation 

	Declared Category 1 Stockpile[1]	Revised Destruction Deadline	Agents	Remaining Stockpile	Projection
Albania	16 metric tons	4/29/2007	Mustard	None	Completed destruction on July 11, 2007.
India	1,055 metric tons	4/28/2009	Unknown	None	Completed destruction on March 16, 2009.
Iraq	Unknown Quantity	“As soon as possible” in accordance with paragraph 8, article IV of the Convention	Sarin, Mustard and possible other agents in various states of degradation	Unknown	Uncertain – many difficulties are faced in destruction of chemical stockpiles
Libya	23.6 metric tons	05/15/2011	Lewisite, Mustard, Phosgene, Sarin, Tabun	23.6 metric tons	Uncertain because of dispute with the United States about destruction funding.
Russia	40,000 metric tons	4/29/2012	Lewisite, Mustard, Phosgene, Sarin, Soman, VX	About 21,500 metric tons as of December 2009, according to the OPCW.	Will not meet deadline; Russia estimates 2015
South Korea	605 metric tons	12/31/2008	Unknown	None	Completed destruction on July 10, 2008.
United States	27,771 metric tons	4/29/2012	Binary nerve agents, Lewisite, Mustard, Sarin, Soman, VX	5449 metric tons as of January 2010.	Will not meet deadline; U.S. estimates 90% destroyed by April 2012

http://www.armscontrol.org/factsheets/cwcglance

Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons

Status of Participation in the CWC: The OPCW States Parties already represent about 98 percent of the global population and landmass as well as 98 percent of the worldwide chemical industry.

The OPCW provides all States not Party to the CWC support in preparing to join the CWC and to effectively implement the global ban on chemical weapons. It is the fastest growing international disarmament organization in history. The United Nations has called upon all States to join the CWC and to rid the world of the threat chemical weapons pose to international security.

OPCW Member States

The following table lists, for each State Party, the dates on which it signed the Convention and/or deposited its instrument of ratification, accession, acceptance or succession with the Depositary, and on which the Convention entered or will enter into force for it. See National Authorities for contact details.

No.	Member State	Signature	Ratification, accession or succession	Entry into Force
1	Afghanistan	14/01/1993	24/09/2003	24/10/2003
2	Albania	14/01/1993	11/05/1994	29/04/1997
3	Algeria	13/01/1993	14/08/1995	29/04/1997
4	Andorra	_	27/02/2003	29/03/2003
5	Antigua and Barbuda	_	29/08/2005	28/09/2005
6	Argentina	13/01/1993	02/10/1995	29/04/1997
7	Armenia	19/03/1993	27/01/1995	29/04/1997
8	Australia	13/01/1993	06/05/1994	29/04/1997
9	Austria	13/01/1993	17/08/1995	29/04/1997
10	Azerbaijan	13/01/1993	29/02/2000	30/03/2000
11	Bahamas	02/03/1994	21/04/2009	21/05/2009
12	Bahrain	24/02/1993	28/04/1997	29/04/1997
13	Bangladesh	14/01/1993	25/04/1997	29/04/1997
14	Barbados	_	07/03/2007	06/04/2007
15	Belarus	14/01/1993	11/07/1996	29/04/1997
16	Belgium	13/01/1993	27/01/1997	29/04/1997
17	Belize	_	01/12/2003	31/12/2003
18	Benin	14/01/1993	14/05/1998	13/06/1998
19	Bhutan	24/04/1997	18/08/2005	17/09/2005
20	Bolivia	14/01/1993	14/08/1998	13/09/1998
21	Bosnia and Herzegovina	16/01/1997	25/02/1997	29/04/1997
22	Botswana	_	31/08/1998	30/09/1998
23	Brazil	13/01/1993	13/03/1996	29/04/1997
24	Brunei	13/01/1993	28/07/1997	27/08/1997
25	Bulgaria	13/01/1993	10/08/1994	29/04/1997
26	Burkina Faso	14/01/1993	08/07/1997	07/08/1997
27	Burundi	15/01/1993	04/09/1998	04/10/1998
28	Cambodia	15/01/1993	19/07/2005	18/08/2005
29	Cameroon	14/01/1993	16/09/1996	29/04/1997
30	Canada	13/01/1993	26/09/1995	29/04/1997
31	Cape Verde	15/01/1993	10/10/2003	09/11/2003
32	Central African Republic	14/01/1993	20/09/2006	20/10/2006
33	Chad	11/10/1994	13/02/2004	14/03/2004
34	Chile	14/01/1993	12/07/1996	29/04/1997
35	China	13/01/1993	25/04/1997	29/04/1997
36	Colombia	13/01/1993	05/04/2000	05/05/2000
37	Comoros	13/01/1993	18/08/2006	17/09/2006
38	Congo	14/01/1993	12/10/2005	11/11/2005
39	Congo-Brazzaville	15/01/1993	04/12/2007	03/01/2008
40	Cook Islands	14/01/1993	15/07/1994	29/04/1997
41	Costa Rica	14/01/1993	31/05/1996	29/04/1997
42	Côte d’Ivoire	13/01/1993	18/12/1995	29/04/1997
43	Croatia	13/01/1993	23/05/1995	29/04/1997
44	Cuba	13/01/1993	29/04/1997	29/05/1997
45	Cyprus	13/01/1993	28/08/1998	27/09/1998
46	Czech Republic	14/01/1993	06/03/1996	29/04/1997
47	Denmark	14/01/1993	13/07/1995	29/04/1997
48	Djibouti	28/09/1993	25/01/2006	24/02/2006
49	Dominica	02/08/1993	12/02/2001	14/03/2001
50	Dominican Republic	13/01/1993	27/03/2009	26/04/2009
51	Ecuador	14/01/1993	06/09/1995	29/04/1997
52	El Salvador	14/01/1993	30/10/1995	29/04/1997
53	Equatorial Guinea	14/01/1993	25/04/1997	29/04/1997
54	Eritrea	_	14/02/2000	15/03/2000
55	Estonia	14/01/1993	26/05/1999	25/06/1999
56	Ethiopia	14/01/1993	13/05/1996	29/04/1997
57	Fiji	14/01/1993	20/01/1993	29/04/1997
58	Finland	14/01/1993	07/02/1995	29/04/1997
59	France	13/01/1993	02/03/1995	29/04/1997
60	Gabon	13/01/1993	08/09/2000	08/10/2000
61	Gambia	13/01/1993	19/05/1998	18/06/1998
62	Georgia	14/01/1993	27/11/1995	29/04/1997
63	Germany	13/01/1993	12/08/1994	29/04/1997
64	Ghana	14/01/1993	09/07/1997	08/08/1997
65	Greece	13/01/1993	22/12/1994	29/04/1997
66	Grenada	09/04/1997	03/06/2005	03/07/2005
67	Guatemala	14/01/1993	12/02/2003	14/03/2003
68	Guinea	14/01/1993	09/06/1997	09/07/1997
69	Guinea-Bissau	14/01/1993	20/05/2008	19/06/2008
70	Guyana	06/10/1993	12/09/1997	12/10/1997
71	Haiti	14/01/1993	22/02/2006	24/03/2006
72	Holy See	14/01/1993	12/05/1999	11/06/1999
73	Honduras	13/01/1993	29/08/2005	28/09/2005
74	Hungary	13/01/1993	31/10/1996	29/04/1997
75	Iceland	13/01/1993	28/04/1997	29/04/1997
76	India	14/01/1993	03/09/1996	29/04/1997
77	Indonesia	13/01/1993	12/11/1998	12/12/1998
78	Iran	13/01/1993	03/11/1997	03/12/1997
79	Iraq	_	13/01/2009	12/02/2009
80	Ireland	14/01/1993	24/06/1996	29/04/1997
81	Italy	13/01/1993	08/12/1995	29/04/1997
82	Jamaica	18/04/1997	08/09/2000	08/10/2000
83	Japan	13/01/1993	15/09/1995	29/04/1997
84	Jordan	_	29/10/1997	28/11/1997
85	Kazakhstan	14/01/1993	23/03/2000	22/04/2000
86	Kenya	15/01/1993	25/04/1997	29/04/1997
87	Kiribati	_	07/09/2000	07/10/2000
88	Kuwait	27/01/1993	29/05/1997	28/06/1997
89	Kyrgyzstan	22/02/1993	29/09/2003	29/10/2003
90	Laos	13/05/1993	25/02/1997	29/04/1997
91	Latvia	06/05/1993	23/07/1996	29/04/1997
92	Lebanon	_	20/11/2008	20/12/2008
93	Lesotho	07/12/1994	07/12/1994	29/04/1997
94	Liberia	15/01/1993	23/02/2006	25/03/2006
95	Libya	_	06/01/2004	05/02/2004
96	Liechtenstein	21/07/1993	24/11/1999	24/12/1999
97	Lithuania	13/01/1993	15/04/1998	15/05/1998
98	Luxembourg	13/01/1993	15/04/1997	29/04/1997
99	Macedonia	_	20/06/1997	20/07/1997
100	Madagascar	15/01/1993	20/10/2004	19/11/2004
101	Malawi	14/01/1993	11/06/1998	11/07/1998
102	Malaysia	13/01/1993	20/04/2000	20/05/2000
103	Maldives	01/10/1993	31/05/1994	29/04/1997
104	Mali	13/01/1993	28/04/1997	29/04/1997
105	Malta	13/01/1993	28/04/1997	29/04/1997
106	Marshall Islands	13/01/1993	19/05/2004	18/06/2004
107	Mauritania	13/01/1993	09/02/1998	11/03/1998
108	Mauritius	14/01/1993	09/02/1993	29/04/1997
109	Mexico	13/01/1993	29/08/1994	29/04/1997
110	Micronesia	13/01/1993	21/06/1999	21/07/1999
111	Moldova	13/01/1993	08/07/1996	29/04/1997
112	Monaco	13/01/1993	01/06/1995	29/04/1997
113	Mongolia	14/01/1993	17/01/1995	29/04/1997
114	Montenegro	_	23/10/2006	03/06/2006
115	Morocco	13/01/1993	28/12/1995	29/04/1997
116	Mozambique	_	15/08/2000	14/09/2000
117	Namibia	13/01/1993	27/11/1995	29/04/1997
118	Nauru	13/01/1993	12/11/2001	12/12/2001
119	Nepal	19/01/1993	18/11/1997	18/12/1997
120	Netherlands	14/01/1993	30/06/1995	29/04/1997
121	New Zealand	14/01/1993	15/07/1996	29/04/1997
122	Nicaragua	09/03/1993	05/11/1999	05/12/1999
123	Niger	14/01/1993	09/04/1997	29/04/1997
124	Nigeria	13/01/1993	20/05/1999	19/06/1999
125	Niue	_	21/04/2005	21/05/2005
126	Norway	13/01/1993	07/04/1994	29/04/1997
127	Oman	02/02/1993	08/02/1995	29/04/1997
128	Pakistan	13/01/1993	28/10/1997	27/11/1997
129	Palau	_	03/02/2003	05/03/2003
130	Panama	16/06/1993	07/10/1998	06/11/1998
131	Papua New Guinea	14/01/1993	17/04/1996	29/04/1997
132	Paraguay	14/01/1993	01/12/1994	29/04/1997
133	Peru	14/01/1993	20/07/1995	29/04/1997
134	Philippines	13/01/1993	11/12/1996	29/04/1997
135	Poland	13/01/1993	23/08/1995	29/04/1997
136	Portugal	13/01/1993	10/09/1996	29/04/1997
137	Qatar	01/02/1993	03/09/1997	03/10/1997
138	Republic of Korea	14/01/1993	28/04/1997	29/04/1997
139	Romania	13/01/1993	15/02/1995	29/04/1997
140	Russia	13/01/1993	05/11/1997	05/12/1997
141	Rwanda	17/05/1993	31/03/2004	30/04/2004
142	Saint Kitts and Nevis	16/03/1994	21/05/2004	20/06/2004
143	Saint Lucia	29/03/1993	09/04/1997	29/04/1997
144	Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	20/09/1993	18/09/2002	18/10/2002
145	Samoa	14/01/1993	27/09/2002	27/10/2002
146	San Marino	13/01/1993	10/12/1999	09/01/2000
147	São Tomé e Príncipe	_	09/09/2003	09/10/2003
148	Saudi Arabia	20/01/1993	09/08/1996	29/04/1997
149	Senegal	13/01/1993	20/07/1998	19/08/1998
150	Serbia	_	20/04/2000	20/05/2000
151	Seychelles	15/01/1993	07/04/1993	29/04/1997
152	Sierra Leone	15/01/1993	30/09/2004	30/10/2004
153	Singapore	14/01/1993	21/05/1997	20/06/1997
154	Slovakia	14/01/1993	27/10/1995	29/04/1997
155	Slovenia	14/01/1993	11/06/1997	11/07/1997
156	Solomon Islands	_	23/09/2004	23/10/2004
157	Somalia	_	29/05/2013	28/06/2013
158	South Africa	14/01/1993	13/09/1995	29/04/1997
159	Spain	13/01/1993	03/08/1994	29/04/1997
160	Sri Lanka	14/01/1993	19/08/1994	29/04/1997
161	Sudan	_	24/05/1999	23/06/1999
162	Suriname	28/04/1997	28/04/1997	29/04/1997
163	Swaziland	23/09/1993	20/11/1996	29/04/1997
164	Sweden	13/01/1993	17/06/1993	29/04/1997
165	Switzerland	14/01/1993	10/03/1995	29/04/1997
166	Tajikistan	14/01/1993	11/01/1995	29/04/1997
167	Tanzania	25/02/1994	25/06/1998	25/07/1998
168	Thailand	14/01/1993	10/12/2002	09/01/2003
169	Timor-Leste	_	07/05/2003	06/06/2003
170	Togo	13/01/1993	23/04/1997	29/04/1997
171	Tonga	_	29/05/2003	28/06/2003
172	Trinidad and Tobago	_	24/06/1997	24/07/1997
173	Tunisia	13/01/1993	15/04/1997	29/04/1997
174	Turkey	14/01/1993	12/05/1997	11/06/1997
175	Turkmenistan	12/10/1993	29/09/1994	29/04/1997
176	Tuvalu	_	19/01/2004	18/02/2004
177	Uganda	14/01/1993	30/11/2001	30/12/2001
178	Ukraine	13/01/1993	16/10/1998	15/11/1998
179	United Arab Emirates	02/02/1993	28/11/2000	28/12/2000
180	United Kingdom	13/01/1993	13/05/1996	29/04/1997
181	United States of America	13/01/1993	25/04/1997	29/04/1997
182	Uruguay	15/01/1993	06/10/1994	29/04/1997
183	Uzbekistan	24/11/1995	23/07/1996	29/04/1997
184	Vanuatu	_	16/09/2005	16/10/2005
185	Venezuela	14/01/1993	03/12/1997	02/01/1998
186	Vietnam	02/01/1998	30/09/1998	30/10/1998
187	Yemen	08/02/1993	02/10/2000	01/11/2000
188	Zambia	13/01/1993	09/02/2001	11/03/2001
189	Zimbabwe	13/01/1993	25/04/1997	29/04/1997

Sources and notes

“Adding insult to torture, Vietnam still suffering from Agent Orange, BTS Best of Season One,” August 17, 2013, http://rt.com/shows/breaking-set-summary/vietnam-agent-orange-torture-601/

Breaking the Set,http://rt.com/shows/breaking-set-summary/

Vietnam Agent Orange Relief and Responsibility Campaign: Justice for all Agent Orange Victims

National Board Members

http://www.vn-agentorange.org/thecall.html

http://www.vn-agentorange.org/postcard_sign.php

Marjorie Cohn is a professor of law at the Thomas Jefferson School of Law (San Diego, California) and a former president of the National Lawyers Guild. She is author of Cowboy Republic: Six Ways the Bush Gang Has Defied the Law (2007) and Rules of Disengagement: The Politics and Honor of Military Dissent (with Kathleen Gilberd, 2009). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marjorie_Cohn

Agent Orange, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agent_orange

Johnston Atoll

Johnston is an unincorporated territory of the United States administered by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service of the Department of the Interior as part of the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument.

In the mid-1980s, the atoll (a coral island consisting of a reef surrounding a lagoon) became a facility for chemical weapons disposal. In 2004 the military base was closed; island control was handed over to civilian authorities.

In the North Pacific about 860 miles southwest of the Hawaii Islands, Johnston Atoll is located on a coral reef platform comprising four islands. Johnston and Sand islands are both enlarged natural features, while North (Akau) and East (Hikina) are two artificial islands formed by coral dredging. Johnston Atoll is grouped as one of the United States Minor Outlying Islands. For nearly 70 years, the atoll was under the control of the American military. In that time it was used as an airbase, a naval refueling depot and a weapons testing area. In the mid-1980s, the atoll became a facility for chemical weapons disposal. In 2004 the military base was closed; island control was handed over to civilian authorities. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johnston_Atoll

Chemical Weapons Convention

http://www.armscontrol.org/factsheets/cwcglance

http://www.armscontrol.org/factsheets/cwcsig.asp.

http://www.armscontrol.org/factsheets/cwcsig

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