During the latest floods, tens of thousands of trees replanted to try to revive the vegetation were washed away. During the war only three of a total of 970 villages remained unscathed, one out of five people died. As a result we have a shortage of labour, we have a high proportion of disabled people and single mothers, and nearly 7,000 of our children have been deformed by American chemicals. Our losses were enormous and our problems remain severe. Lack of land, shortages of labour and lack of government services means that starvation confronts one in five households and children suffer a malnutrition rate in excess of 50 percent.
People continue to be killed and injured by landmines and unexploded ordinance.
Some government assistance has been provided to the worst affected areas. But the Stalinist regime in Hanoi will do little to overcome the legacy of economic backwardness and poverty affecting millions of people let alone implement measures to mitigate the repeated flooding. For the last decade, Vietnam's limited funds have been directed to opening up the country to foreign investors and exploiting business opportunities which have benefitted the upper echelons of the bureaucracy not the vast majority of workers and rural poor. The WSWS invites your comments. Please send e-mail .