OPEN LETTER
HE Mr. Don PramudwinaiMinister of Foreign Affairs, Kingdom of Thailand
HRH Sultan Hassanal BolkiahMinister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Brunei Darussalam
HE Mr.Prak SokhonnMinistry of Foreign Affairs & International Cooperation, Kingdom of Cambodia
HE Ms.Retno MarsudiMinistry of Foreign Affairs of Indonesia, Republic of Indonesia
HE Mr. Saleumxay KommasithMinistry of Foreign Affairs, Lao People’s Democratic Republic
HE Mr.Hishammuddin HusseinThe Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Malaysia
HE Daw Aung San Suu KyiMinistry of Foreign Affairs, Republic of the Union of Myanmar
HE Mr. Teodoro L. Locsin Jr.Secretary of Foreign Affairs, Republic of the Philippines
HE Mr.Vivian Balakrishnan Minister of Foreign Affairs, Republic of Singapore
Subject:
95% OF VIETNAMESE PEOPLE WANT TO SUE CHINA IN INTERNATIONAL COURTS IN A REFERENDUM
Your Excellencies,
Over the past decades, China has gradually invaded the South China Sea through acts of bribery, coercion, provocation, aggression, militarization, status change and violations of Freedom of Navigation.
Recently, from April 13 to April 19, 2020, China tookadvantage of the Wuhan pandemic (COVID-19) and attempted to finalize its South China Sea claims by issuing Note Verbale CML/42/2020 to the United Nations. Chinaprovocatively and arbitrarily set up two districts, Nansha and Xisha,in order to legitimize its administrative rule, threaten Vietnam and the other sovereign states in the South China Sea, and get themto abandon the disputed islands. In addition, China plans to launch an Air Defense Identification Area (ADIZ) to control the whole airspace of Southeast Asia and threaten the security of all Southeast Asian nations.
Based on history, geography, and the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea of 1982 (UNCLOS), the Paracel Islands and mostof the Spratly Islands are under the sovereignty of Vietnam.
Although this time the Vietnamese government did speak up, it was merely a feeble formality.
The Vietnamese people have raised their voices to ask for justice and to force China to stop invading Vietnamese territorial waters. The Vietnamese people have spokenout for justice, forcing the Vietnamese communist authorities to transparently claim sovereignty against China in an international court. The overwhelming majority of Vietnam’s 97 million people have expressed their desire to stand with the free world.
Fishermen from Vietnam and other Southeast Asian countries cannot make a living because of bullying by China, which has issued a ban on fishing in the territorial waters of Vietnam’s EEZ and those of other Southeast Asian countriesas well as robbingandkillingfishermen and sinking their fishing boats.
The environment and the seabedsthroughout Southeast Asia have been devastated by China in violation of the International Law of the Sea. Chinese invasion and expansion,both on the sea and in the air,threaten the survival of all of Southeast Asiaas well as the peace and security ofthe Indian Pacific region.
Faced with this situation, we, representatives of organizations fighting for human rights, democracy and freedom for Vietnam,using social networking sites, are conducting a referendum of the Vietnamese people on one question, “Facedwith China’s invasion in the South China Sea, do you think Vietnam should sue China in international courts?”
As of today, more than half a million Vietnamese have participatedin this referendumand 45 organizations have supported it, with 95% of respondents wanting to sue.
An Eastern proverb says, “The People’s will is God’s will.”Only nationsareeverlasting,and a country’s true ownersare its people. This Open Letter reflects the will of the Vietnamese people, who are forTerritorial Integrity, Respect for Vietnam’s Sovereignty, and Complete Independence from China. We send this Open Letter to you, esteemed leaders of free nations thatrespect peace and justice, hoping to convey the will of the vast majority of the people of Vietnam. We ask that you unanimously and earnestly support the Vietnamese people by urging, promoting,and supportinglitigation against China before the international courts.
In particular, we respectfully send this letter to the member countries of ASEAN so that you can understand and strongly support the will of the Vietnamese people. Hopefully, their aspirations, expressed through the referendum, will assist ASEAN in protecting the rights, security, peace, and development of all the nations ofSoutheast Asia and the Indo-Pacific region in the face of China’s aggression.
Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely yours,
Le Thanh Nhan, Chairman
ALLIANCE FOR A FREE AND DEMOCRATIC VIETNAM
Nguyen Huu Ninh, President
ALLIANCE FOR DEMOCRACY IN VIETNAM
Tran Kien, President
ANTI-CHINA EXPANSION MOVEMENT
Dr. Mai Thanh Truyet, Group Leader
ANTI-CHINESE ANTI-VIETNAMESE COMMUNISTS GROUP
Nguyen Thanh Ha, Coordinating Chair
ASSEMBLY FOR DEMOCRACY IN VIETNAM
Dr. Hoang Thi MyLam, President
ASSOCIATION OF VIETNAMESE REFUGEES OF FEDERAL REPUBLICOF GERMANY
Vu Hoang Hai, Representative
BLOC 8406 INTERNATIONAL
Atty. Nguyen Van Dai, President
BROTHERHOOD FOR DEMOCRACY
Tran Hung, Secretary
BUDDHIST CHURCH OF AMERICAPastor
Nguyen Hoang Hoa, President
CHURCH OF PROTESTANT LUTHERAN COMMUNITY OF VIETNAM
Giao Nguyen, Moderator
EAST SEA OF VIETNAM –INDO-PACIFICDISCUSSION GROUP
Dr. Nguyen Quyen Tai, Chairman
FREE VIETNAM GLOBAL NETWORK
Nguyen Van Vui, President
FRIENDLY ASSOCIATION OF EX-POLITICAL PRISONERS UNDER THE COMMUNIST REGIME IN VIETNAM (FAVPPUCR/VN)
Prof. Tran Minh Xuan, President
FRIENDS OF PROFESSOR NGUYEN NGOC HUY
Ta Dzu, Coordinator
HOI LUAN THANG NGHIA
Huynh Tam, President
INSTITUTE FOR HISTORIC CAODAI RELIGION (Paris, France)
Dr. Do Van Hoi, Director
INTERFAITH COUNCIL OF VIETNAM
Dr. Doan Viet Hoat, Chairman
INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR VIETNAM
Dr. David Tran, Chair
LEAGUE OF VIETNAMESE AMERICAN VOTERS
Dr. Minh Tran, Secretary
MINH VAN FOUNDATION
Nguyen Phuc Viet, President
MOVEMENT FOR VIETNAM’S FREEDOM
Nguyen Phuoc Nga, President,
NHA VIET NAM-VIETNAMESE COMMUNITY CENTER(FLORIDA, USA)
Ngai Vinh, Representative
PHO DUC CHINH YOUTH ORGANIZATION
Most Ven. Thich Khong Tanh, Vice President
SANGHA OF UNIFIED BUDDHIST CHURCH OF VIETNAM
Dr. Bui Trong Cuong, President
THE ANTI-CHINESE DOMINATION COMMITTEE
Huynh Luong Thien, President
THE MOVEMENT OF PERFORMING ARTISTS AND WRITERS FOR A FUTUREVIETNAM
Dr. Nguyen Ba Long, Moderator
THE VIET DEMOCRATIC SIDE’S INTERNATIONAL FORUM
Tran Tu Thanh, Founding Chairman
Atty.Ta Quang Trung, CounselorTHE VIETNAM-HELSINKI HUMAN RIGHTS COMMITTEE
Bao Lam, Vice President
TRAN NHAN TONG CLUB
Atty. Nguyen Linh, Director,
Office of International RelationsUNIFIED BUDDHIST CHURCH OF VIETNAM
Tran Anh, President
VIET 2000
Hoang Lan, Group Leader
VIET LIST
Nguyen Thien Bang, Representative
VIET PEOPLE YOUTH GROUP
Dr. Nguyen Nhu Phuc, Vice President
VIETNAM DEMOCRACY CENTER
Nam Nguyen, PhD, Moderator
VIETNAM ECONOMIC ZONES DISCUSSION GROUP
Dr. Ton That Son, Moderator
VIETNAMESE FORUMS NETWORK
Le Thanh Nhan, Chairman
VIETNAM NATIONALIST PARTY
Prof. Phan Thong Hung, President,
Executive Board
Dr. Nguyen Van Nghi, President,
RepresentativeBoardVIETNAMESE AMERICAN COMMUNITY OF PENNSYLVANIA
Nguyen Linh, Secretary
VIETNAMESE AMERICANS FOR HUMAN RIGHTS
Tran Canh Xuan, President
VIETNAMESE AMERICAN SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY SOCIETY
Atty. Tran Minh Nhut, President
VIETNAMESE AMERICAN SENIORS SOCIETY IN OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA
Dong Van Tran, Secretary General
VIETNAMESE CANADIAN FEDERATION
Dr. Bui Trong Cuong, President
VIETNAMESE COMMUNITY IN AUSTRALIA -QUEENSLAND CHAPTER
Dr. Mai Thanh Truyet, President
VIETNAMESE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION SOCIETY
Ducly Bui,Director
VIETNAMESE CULTURAL CENTER / TRAN HUNG DAO FOUNDATION
Genie Nguyen Thi Ngoc Giao, President
VOICE OF VIETNAMESE AMERICANS
Vu Van Thai, SecretaryGeneral
WORLD VIETNAMESE BUDDHIST ORDER
Tran Long, Group Leader
YOUTH FOR DEMOCRACY