People's Army News: Public opinions against RFA’s hostile propaganda towards Vietnam
Public opinions against RFA’s hostile propaganda towards Vietnam Part 1: Voice from America
RFA (Radio Free Asia) has recently announced to reduce its Vietnamese broadcasting program to half an hour a day. The Vietnamese oversea communities have given positive response, many have posted articles denouncing RFA’s hatred stirring and hostile propaganda towards Vietnam on their blogs and websites. The people as a whole want RFA to cancel its Vietnamese broadcast for good, some even want it to be shut down.
Urging RFA’s shut-down campaign
People who call for shutting down the Vietnamese broadcast on RFA are the ones who used to be the victims of the fabricating and biased coverage methods of RFA. Many Vietnamese journalists in America could not approve RFA’s lack of work ethics, and discontent at RFA’s “blindfold” coverage method spreads among the Vietnamese overseas who are well-informed about domestic condition.
Not so long ago RFA has posted “Who did Mr. Tran Nhat Quang insult?” by Canh Co – this’s possibly not the real name of the author. The article clearly insults and makes false accusation against Mr. Tran Nhat Quang – a patriotic citizen, through which RFA could make propaganda against Vietnam. The tone and words are so insolent and filthy that they should not be quoted here. The article has caused discontent among Vietnamese netizens. Mr. Quang has sent a request for the removal of the article and public apology. RFA has removed the article under public pressure without any formal apology or correction.
Hoang Thi Nhat Le, a female in Hanoi city should be named another victim of RFA. She has sent a complaint letter to the U.S Congressman Ed Royce on RFA-related issues. “In October 2013, this news agency posted a series of articles by Nguyễn Ngọc Già with distorting contents which insulted me, caused huge damages to my career and personal life”…
Defamation and insulting the honor and humanity of Vietnamese patriotic citizens have been the latest tricks of RFA, through which they could make propaganda programs against Vietnam. They often distort information, calumniate and smear not only the State Government, the Communist Party and leaders of Vietnam but also the historical truth. Glancing through the website of RFA Vietnamese on the occasion of April, anyone could see unwilling titles and articles that trample historical truth and ignore the achievements of the people liberation and unification struggle. Much more dangerous - the coverage method of RFA has made up an overcast image about Vietnam after April 30th 1975, in order to implement the plots sabotaging the people unification policy, causing separation, deepening hatred.
Discontents have initiated a group urging for shutting down RFA, some have even filed a lawsuit against RFA to the U.S court for defamation. This campaign has spread among Vietnamese communities all over the world. Among the journalists heading the campaign, Mr. Nguyen Phuong Hung – Editor General of the oversea online news kbchn.net, has sent a letter to U.S Republican Congressman Ed Royce to present reasons why the U.S Congress should stop funding RFA. Congressman Ed Royce is the very person who holds prejudice against Vietnam and co-founded the thing called “Vietnam Human Rights Act of 2013 (HR 1897)”.
When the letter was posted online widely, Mr. Hung has received huge support and appreciation from the readers. RFA is “such a poor-quality speaker that no one wanna hear it” says a man whose nickname’s Pham The, while Thanh Nguyen points out that “RFA often makes up stories, telling lies, having no work ethics; therefore RFA should be shut down to avoid wasting public budget”. “We should raise our voice to make the American to see how RFA lies them” and “It’s not beneficial for the U.S – Vietnam relationship” says Quang Thanh; “We need to improve this campaign into such a huge movement that the U.S government has to pay attention…” says Le Quan. “I’ve given up tracking news on RFA Vietnamese for years because there’re so many distorted information and lies, and this agency has never accepted different voices when you express your opinion” written in English by an anonymous one.
“Evading responsibility, paying no respect to the work ethics”
John Lee, an American journalist has shared some of his points of view on RFA’s coverage methods with People’s Army News via email. “In my opinion, RFA’s website has shown everything so clearly. Every article on democracy, human rights, religious freedom in Vietnam is so one-sided, and they do not reflex truly what has happened and what’s going on. The persons they call “democracy and human rights activists” are in fact the one who violate the Law of Vietnam. They often encourage the persons against the common interest of the community and collect singular negative cases in Vietnamese society to make a full evaluation on Vietnam. It’s so wrong, so one-sided and it could never be positive. On posting articles by the one who called themselves “activists”, RFA always remind us that they are the opinions of the author – not RFA’s. This behavior of a so-called “news agency” is an act of “evading responsibility”
Mr. Lee has provided the case of “Con Dau” in Da Nang as a typical evidence of RFA’s act of distorting information. It came as a huge surprise to Mr. Hoang Duy Hung, Houston city Councilman and Ms. Etcetera Nguyen, Vietweekly’s Secretary General when they visited Con Dau to find the truth in what RFA had told them. The truth was completely contrary to the information that RFA had received from “inside” witnesses. “All the points have proved one thing: RFA is not honest with the readers. Under the journalism ethics and standards, it must be denounced.” emphasizes John Lee.
Part 2: “We totally approve of shutting down RFA”
Peope’s Army News – Spreading inaccurate and smearing information about Vietnam, RFA wants to create a distorted image about Vietnam among the international community and overseas Vietnamese; to stir discontent against the State Government among the people, to cause separation between the overseas Vietnamese communities and the domestic ones. PAN’s journalist has interviewed some Vietnamese American on the impact that RFA has created on the community in the U.S, where RFA’s located.
Acting on outdated thinking
Mr. Nguyen The Phuong from San Diego: Since the day I left my hometown, I have been thirsty for news on Vietnam. RFA used to be a source of news that I paid attention to years ago. But when I had many others to compare, I realized that RFA’s source of news was completely incredible. That’s why I ended hearing RFA. It’s so dangerous that RFA did create negative impact on the thinking and the behavior towards Vietnam of many Vietnamese Americans. They’ve been spreading such an evil image of Vietnam full of injustice, instability that some Vietnamese Americans feel angry and hateful, using acrimonious words on mentioning Vietnam.
I realize that news on RFA is about nothing new but human rights, democracy and religious freedom issues in Vietnam. This is an old dirty trick to sabotage and smear Vietnam. But this calumniating coverage method about human rights issues in Vietnam is clearly upstream. And RFA surely knows nothing about another Vietnam where people have thousands of festival every year, pagodas and churches have been built and everyone has rights to practice his religion and belief.
I totally approve of shutting down the RFA Vietnamese broadcasting program, even shutting down the whole agency if possible. The Vietnamese broadcasting program and the Vietnamese online news have been mistakes since the very first moment. They have ignored the U.S’ spirit of healing war legacy, and the Vietnam’s reconciliation effort. I’ve never seen any words on RFA about the U.S humanitarian aid to Vietnam, or the U.S veterans who are haunted by the war come back to Vietnam to find peace in their soul.
“Shutting down RFA for good is the aspiration of the conscientious Vietnamese American”
Mr. Vo Dong Cung from Garden Grove city: I heard RFA some years ago, and I don’t pay any attention to this news agency any more. And I am not the only one, many overseas Vietnamese friends of mine do the same. I approve of shutting down the whole RFA, not only the Vietnamese program. The reason’s very simple – this news agency has given itself the authority to grant freedom to Asia as there’s no freedom there. I don’t believe anything that RFA has talked about human rights and democracy because those things do not truly exist in RFA.
RFA receives operating budget from the U.S taxpayers under the decision of the U.S Congress. It came to me as no surprise when the U.S – Vietnam relations have been advanced, the vision of being cut down on award has caused jitter and panic among the RFA Vietnamese branch. And now they have to cut down their broadcast duration.
I think shutting down RFA for good is the aspiration of the conscientious Vietnamese American. Most of them want to have a stable life and good connection to their relatives in Vietnam. They always remember their birth place where they grew up with their relatives, and they’re willing to help. It’s the sincerely love they give to their Fatherland and Peoples. These people have ignored the propaganda against their Fatherland carried out by the minority anti-communism extremist and directed their heart and mind towards Vietnam with any means. Everything comes from the natural feeling towards the place where they were born.
Mr. Nguyen The Phuong and Mr. Vo Dong Cung are both former troops of the Republic of Vietnam regime. Mr. Phuong is a regular guest of the broadcasting program “Voice of Fatherland”. Mr. Cung is a member of the Organizing for Action that holds support to the U.S – Vietnam relations advancing policies.
