Ông Nguyễn Cao Kỳ và Hòa Giải Dân Tộc (Nguyen cao Ky and His Reconciliation)

 

The former South Vietnam Vice President Nguyen cao Ky passed away earlier this month .  He was 81 years old.   Just like his life, his death is a news maker.   There are numerous articles and discussions on the Web about his flamboyant life of booze and women, his rise briefly to power in a corrupted South Vietnam political system, his hardliner against communism and ultimately his return as a refugee in America to live in Vietnam (albeit part time) as a middleman trying to bring American investors to build a golf resort in a communist country. 

What livid a lot of the anti-communist groups is his condescending attitude toward them.  In an interview on 4/30/2005 in Vietnam by VTVI Hanoi as part of a program titled  "The Vietnam War In Retrospective after 30 Years", Nguyen cao Ky did not mince his words (see video).  The first few minutes of his interview is transcribed as follows -

"... I told many Viet Kieu (Overseas Vietnamese) and my former soldiers,  I used to fight along their side and just like them,  I wanted to have a final victory to unite the country.   I know that it is a responsibility of every Vietnamese citizen to unify the country. 

But we could not do it.  The people on the other side did it.  This is now history and we have to accept it.  The country is now united after 30 years.  I cannot understand why some people still talk about the country is lost and we have to take back the country.  The country is not lost to China or France.  Why we have to regain our country?  From what?  Even the 3 million Vietnamese people overseas cannot say they represent the true Vietnam.  They are not representing Vietnam.....................

There are extreme elements in the community who always claim that they are in the name of nationalism, freedom and democracy (to fight to take back the country).  These people are crooks who hide under these worned-out jingoisms to take money from the people.  To manipulate people's good will for their own agenda.   Don't be fool by them I tell you...........  These anti-communist extremists are making a lot of noises even though they only represent a very small minority.  The majority of the community ignore them.  That is the saddest thing about our Viet Kieu community.  These anti-communist people are a bunch of clowns.........."



Lou Correa vs. Janet Nguyen for OC Supervisor?

There are a lot of rumors within the Vietnamese-American community in Little Saigon about the upcoming 2012 race for the First District OC Supervisor seat currently occupied by Supervisor Janet Nguyen.  An often mentioned contender for the seat  is the current State Senator Lou Correa.  With Nguyen receiving strong support from the community and being an incumbent, the conventional wisdom is that this is an unlikely matchup.

Couple weeks ago, Viet Herald Daily sat down with Lou Correa and the subject was brought up.  The interview was done by the reporter Doan Trong.  Here is an excerpt as translated into English:

VH:  Earlier this year in an article in  the OC Regiter, columnist Martin Wisckol disclosed that you are fundraising in Sacramento to potentially run again for the "1st district supervisorial" in 2012.   Would you care to comment on the speculation since your state senate term doesn't end until 2014?

Correa: My fundraing in Sacramento is for the attorney general of California in the future. That is the seat that I am aiming for and not any other position at the moment.

VH: If in the future, Congresswoman Loretta Sanchez leaves her 47th district seat, Are you ready to replace her for that position?

Correa: In politics, anything can happen. However, as I just mentioned,  I would like to be able to run for the AG seat after my term is over.

VH:  Is it safe to say that your name will not appear on the list of candidacy for either congressional or OC supervisor race in 2012?

Correa:  It is safe to say for now that my next political campaign will be for the AG position.

A Conversation on Vietnamese American Literature

Bridging Cultures  & Generations:

A Conversation on Vietnamese American Literature

Saturday, May 7  3-5 p.m.



Martin Luther King, Jr. Library

Second floor, Rooms 225-229

150 East San Fernando Street

San José




FEATURING AWARD-WINNING & CRITICALLY-ACCLAIMED AUTHORS:



Angie Chau, Quiet As They Come

Andrew Lam, East Eats West

Isabelle Pelaud, This Is All I Choose to Tell


The San Francisco Chronicle described ANGIE CHAU'S Quiet As They Come as "a powerful mix of tragedy and kindness, of miscommunications and all-too-painful empathy, which bound together are a resonating homage to many an immigrant." She was born in Vietnam and now lives in Eddie Money's former studio in Oakland.


ANDREW LAM is a writer and a co-founder of New America Media. Perfume Dreams: Reflections on the Vietnamese Diaspora has won the Pen American "Beyond the Margins" Award in 2006, and was short-listed for "Asian American Literature Award."East Eats West: Writing in Two Hemispheres was published in October 2010 and listed as top ten indie books by Shelf Unbound Magazine.


ISABELLE PELAUD is associate professor in Asian American Studies at San Francisco State University and author of This Is All I Choose To Tell: History and Hybridity in Vietnamese American Literature. She is the founder and Executive Director of the Diasporic Vietnamese Artists Network (DVAN).

Survey on Court Administration in Viet Nam

Request for Proposals


Research Team to conduct Survey on Court Administration in Viet Nam

United Nations Development Programme- Vietnam

Full RFP for this and other activities at the link below.

www.undp.org.vn/get-involved/undp-opportunities/current-tender-opportunities/?contentId=0&languageId=1


UNDP Viet Nam seeks proposals from individual consultants and consulting firms/institutions/organization for a Research Team to conduct Survey on Court Administration in Viet Nam, under the Project “Strengthening Access to Justice and Protection of Rights in Viet Nam”.

The overall objective of this survey is to describe and capture a detailed and comprehensive picture of court administration in Viet Nam.

The key objectives of the survey are:


2.1. To assess normative framework of court governance and administration (including the reviews of Party’s policy, guidance and legal normative documents) and identify the gaps and shortcomings in practice

2.2. To examine the practical situation in which independence and impartiality of the court and judges are enhanced or undermined

2.3. To provide new data aggregated from available and independent sources and to possible extent to capture the impacts and changes in court governance and administration as resulted from the newly extended jurisdiction of district courts over the past few years

2.4. Drawing on the overall assessment of court administration (both from normative and reality perspectives), to identify key factors which appear significant in relation to enhancing (or undermining) the impartiality, accountability and independence of judicial decision-making, and to provide evidence-based recommendations for enhancement of independence of court and judges in adjudication


Submission deadline: February 11, 2011; 5:00 pm Hanoi time (UTC/GMT +7 hours)

New Year Celebration in The Bay Area - The Year of Cat

There are different New Year Celebration events in the Bay Area organized by various community groups during the last week of January and first week of February.  All will attract thousands of people.  With the economy rebounding,  the community is excited and ready to celebrate big to bring in the new year and getting rid of the old.  To everyone,  A Happy and Prosperous Year of the Cat!

Diasporic Vietnamese Artist Network Fund Raiser - January 14 in SF

Here is an excerpt of the event as posted on DVAN Website - http://diacritics.org/2011/01/06/dvan-holiday-fundraiser-silent-auction/

"....So hopefully you all know that diaCRITICS is part of the Diasporic Vietnamese Artists Network. Our mission is to promote the arts of the Vietnamese at home and abroad. For the second time, we are hosting a holiday fundraiser at Andrew Lam’s condo complex in San Francisco. Last year we raised a big chunk of money, due to the generosity of our supporters. We had some music, some author readings, a lot of good wine and food, and a silent auction of some very nice artwork. So more of the same this year, EXCEPT:



We have a reading and book signing by Andrew Lam and Isabelle Thuy Pelaud, for Andrew’s not-as-new book East Eats West and Isabelle’s brand-new book this is all i choose to tell.: History and hybridity in Vietnamese American Literature, with proceeds benefitting DVAN.

We announce a project that’s been well under way, our Southeast Asian Women in the Diaspora anthology of literature and art. Unfortunately, a book with high-quality art images is expensive to produce, and this is one big reason for the fundraiser–to raise crucial funds to subsidize this important book, the first of its kind. The anthology is done. We just need some extra money for printing! Meet several of the authors, who’ll be reading that evening.



Even if you don’t have a lot of money to give, we hope you have $10. That’s the price of admission, and you can eat all you want and listen to all the readings and hobnob with the authors.
......And once you’re there, if you can’t afford the silent auction, or a book by Andrew or Isabelle ($20), we know you can afford to have a drink–a few bucks for a glass of wine, which you’ll actually enjoy. The wine is not from Trader Joe’s or Costco or Safeway, but from a pretty darn good source who’s cutting us a deal for some very nice bottles.



So please help spread the world for a good cause. We’ll see you on January 14.

Scholarship Programs For Vietnam

The San Francisco Foundation (SFF)

Multicultural Fellowships 2011-2013:

Arts and Culture, Civic Engagement, and Community Health
http://www.sff.org/programs/multicultural-fellowship-program
Deadline - January 20, 2011.

Compensation: $46,000-$50,000 annually


Special Information Sessions at 225 Bush Street, Suite 500, San Francisco, CA 94104.

Jan 11, 2011 – 2:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.



Vietnam Education Foundation (VEF)
Fellowship program

Visiting Scholar Program

U.S. Faculty Scholar Program
http://www.vef.gov/

Deadline: Various depending on programs Feb 7 – April 10, 2011
Compensation: Various financial support.



The Institute for Vietnamese Culture & Education (IVCE)

Vietnam Teaching Assistantship (ViTA)
Vietnam Education Development (VED)

http://www.ivce.org/

Deadline: various

Compensation: stipend for housing



Friends of Hue Foundation (FHF)

The VASF Cultural Bridges Fellowship (Summer 2011)


http://www.vietscholarships.org/fellowships.html#

Deadline: Jan 17, 2011

Compensation: $2500 - travel expense and stipend