The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“VIETNAM MUST RESPECT THE RULE OF LAW” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Justice was published in the House of Representatives section on pages H6665 on June 12, 2009.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
VIETNAM MUST RESPECT THE RULE OF LAW
(Mr. CAO asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute.)
Mr. CAO. Madam Speaker, although we live in the 21st century, many people today are still deprived of life, liberty or property without due process of law by governments that lack the rule of law. One such government is the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.
About 10 years ago, the Vietnamese Ministry of Labor, War Invalids, and Social Affairs directly oversaw and operated two state-owned labor companies that were involved in the largest human trafficking case ever prosecuted by the U.S. Department of Justice. The case thoroughly documented the exploitation and abusive conditions faced by more than 230 workers at the Daewoosa factory in American Samoa. These victims were beaten, starved, sexually harassed and threatened with deportation. The High Court of American Samoa subsequently found these state-owned labor agencies liable for the atrocities and made them pay
$3.5 million to the victims. Almost 10 years after the ruling, Vietnam still refuses to acknowledge its part in these atrocities and pay.
Madam Speaker, I ask that the U.S. Congress demand that the Vietnamese government pay the damages and respect the rule of law.
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