The Vietnamese Community in Australia organized a mass protest today in commemoration of April 30, 1975 by going to the Vietnam Embassy, then to the Thai Embassy, to seek the release of Vietnamese American Ly Tong, who was a pilot in the Air Force of the Republic of Vietnam's Black Eagle squadron. In 1992, Ly Tong hijacked a Vietnamese Airlines airliner and forced the pilot to fly over Saigon, whereupon he dropped anticommunist leaflets. Ly Tong then parachuted from the plane (no passengers or crew were endangered) whereupon he was captured by Vietnamese soldiers and sent to prison once again. He was released and returned to the US in 1998, whereupon he rented a Cessna and dropped anticommunist leaflets over Havana. In November 2000 Ly Tong hijacked a Thai plane, dropped anticommunist leaflets over Saigon, and was arrested at landing. Thailand is extraditing Ly Tong to Vietnam for "violation of Vietnamese airspace." The thousands of Vietnamese Diaspora include protestors the poet Nguyen Chi Thien, who sent this photograph to Viet-Am Review. s   more »

The Vietnamese Communist Party (VCP), one of the last few hold-outs of Communism of the Stalinist era, has just gone through its Tenth Congress in Hanoi, a quinquennial ritual to rubber stamp its Politbureau’s choice of candidates for the 3 most crucial political positions in the country: General Secretary, President, and Prime Minister. The Congress is also an occasion for party members to discuss the action plan for the next 5 years. Its took place on the eve of the 31st anniversary of the take-over of South Vietnam by northern Communist forces on April 30, 1975. This Commentary by Le Duy Can of the Vietnamese Canadian Federation discusses corruption in Vietnam and the Manifesto 2006 petition by 118 Vietnamese citizens to demand democracy from their government.   more »

Vietnamese students at the University of Texas-Arlington have a petition online to protest administration displaying the communist flag of Vietnam during a cultural display. Parade announcement in Toronto, Canada, to raise awareness of Vietnamese heritage flag.   more »