Uncategorized

OP-ED: Maintaining 40 Years of Peace in Vietnam

Published

10 years ago

August 7, 2015

Oakland Post

By Anh Le

On July 7, President Barack Obama met with Nguyen Trong Phu, Vietnam’s Communist Party Secretary at the White House.

April 15 was the commemoration of the 40-year anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War.

&lt;p>My father served as a diplomat in West Germany. Before that, he worked at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Saigon with Vu Van Mau, the Minister of Foreign Affairs.

During the War in Vietnam, Vu Van Mau called for a peaceful settlement to the war. Vu Van Mau later resigned from the government to protest the Ngo Dinh

Diem government’s brutal treatment of Buddhist monks, who were setting themselves on fire as protest against the regime.

My parents had themselves experienced the tragic consequences that befall a nation caught in the human condition called war. During the French-Indochina War, my father was imprisoned and tortured by the French.

He was tortured daily for two years by his captors, beaten, and given electric shocks to his genitals and body.

In the eyes of the French captors, my father’s sin was that he was born a Vietnamese human being, and was a well educated one.

My mother had been raped during the French-Indochina War period.

My father, who later became a professor in the U.S., yearned and prayed for peace in his homeland during the Vietnam War. My mother, who had not seen her parents and siblings for decades, prayed for peace, hoping that the raining of bombs from B-52s would cease.

Since 1975, we have witnessed the spirit of reconciliation between Vietnam and the U.S.

A few years ago, immigrants within the Vietnamese-American community argued vehemently over the loss of their country — “mat nuoc” (“loss of country”) — even while the term “giai phong” (liberation) and “ngay thong nhat” (day of reunification) were commonly used to mark the war’s end.

The end of the war meant for the Vietnamese people “bon muoi nam mien Bac va Nam thong thuong” (“40 years of the Vietnamese people in the North and South regions traveling freely as a people of a reunified country”).

A major challenge to Vietnam’s security has been the territorial conflicts over the Spratly Islands between Vietnam and China, as well as China and her other neighbors, reminding us of the threat of war looming over this oil- and gas-rich region.

Vietnam called for international negotiations and adherence to the Convention on the Law of the Sea, which China rejected.

China has expanded its military presence in the region, with land reclamation and the building of military installations.

Vietnam has purchased submarines from Russia to beef up its defense.

The U.S. military has flown reconnaissance flights over the Spratly Islands, and China warning the U.S. pilots to steer away.

Vietnam and the U.S. increasingly strengthen their alliance, in partnership with other Asian nations, to counteract China’s threat.

It is ironic that Vietnam, once viewed as the enemy by the U.S., is now so strongly courted by the U.S. government.

This is the paradox of the relationship between both nations.

Geopolitically, Vietnam is once again in a unique place on the world’s stage.

I believe that we must call on the U.N., along with the World Court in The Hague, to address the issues in the Spratly Islands region, to prevent a war with catastrophic and tragic consequences for all sides.

Let us not forget the Vietnam War but strive to learn the lessons from it. Let us work for a peaceful world, for ourselves, our children and all future generations.

My hope for Vietnam, my native country and the land of my parents and ancestors, is that she will enjoy peace for generations to come.

Chuc Nuoc Vietnam Hoa Binh Mai Mai. May Vietnam Enjoy Lasting Peace.

Anh Le has worked with the Vietnamese American community in San Francisco and the Bay Area for many years.

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

Uncategorized

Oakland Housing and Community Development Department Awards $80.5 Million to Affordable Housing Developments

Published

7 months ago

June 17, 2025

Oakland Post

Special to The Post

The City of Oakland’s Housing and Community Development Department (Oakland HCD) announced its awardees for the 2024-2025 New Construction of Multifamily Affordable Housing Notice of Funding Availability (New Construction NOFA) today Five permanently affordable housing developments received awards out of 24 applications received by the Department, with award amounts ranging from $7 million to $28 million.

In a statement released on Jan. 16, Oakland’s HCD stated, “Five New Construction Multifamily Affordable Housing Development projects awarded a total of $80.5 million to develop 583 affordable rental homes throughout Oakland. Awardees will leverage the City’s investments to apply for funding from the state and private entities.”

In December, the office of Rebecca Kaplan, interim District 2 City Councilmember, worked with HCD to allocate an additional $10 Million from Measure U to the funding pool. The legislation also readopted various capital improvement projects including street paving and upgrades to public facilities.

The following Oakland affordable housing developments have been awarded in the current round:

Mandela Station Affordable

238 Affordable Units including 60 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $15 million + previously awarded $18 million
Developer: Mandela Station LP (Pacific West Communities, Inc. and Strategic Urban Development Alliance, LLC)
City Council District: 3
Address: 1451 7th St.

Liberation Park Residences

118 Affordable Units including 30 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $28 million
Developer: Eden Housing and Black Cultural Zone
City Council District: 6
Address: 7101 Foothill Blvd.

34th & San Pablo

59 Affordable Units including 30 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $7 million
Developer: 34SP Development LP (EBALDC)
City Council District: 3
Address: 3419-3431 San Pablo Ave.

The Eliza

96 Affordable Units including 20 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $20 million
Developer: Mercy Housing California
City Council District: 3
Address: 2125 Telegraph Ave.

3135 San Pablo

72 Affordable Units including 36 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $10.5 million
Developer: SAHA and St. Mary’s Center
City Council District: 3
Address: 3515 San Pablo Ave.

The source of this story is the media reltations office of District 2 City Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan.

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

Activism

Oakland Housing and Community Development Department Awards $80.5 Million to Affordable Housing Developments

Published

12 months ago

January 30, 2025

Oakland Post

Rebecca Kaplan, interim District 2 city councilmember. File photo.

Special to The Post

The following Oakland affordable housing developments have been awarded in the current round:

Mandela Station Affordable

238 Affordable Units including 60 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $15 million + previously awarded $18 million
Developer: Mandela Station LP (Pacific West Communities, Inc. and Strategic Urban Development Alliance, LLC)
City Council District: 3
Address: 1451 7th St.

Liberation Park Residences

118 Affordable Units including 30 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $28 million
Developer: Eden Housing and Black Cultural Zone
City Council District: 6
Address: 7101 Foothill Blvd.

34th & San Pablo

59 Affordable Units including 30 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $7 million
Developer: 34SP Development LP (EBALDC)
City Council District: 3
Address: 3419-3431 San Pablo Ave.

The Eliza

96 Affordable Units, including 20 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $20 million
Developer: Mercy Housing California
City Council District: 3
Address: 2125 Telegraph Ave.

3135 San Pablo

72 Affordable Units including 36 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $10.5 million
Developer: SAHA and St. Mary’s Center
City Council District: 3
Address: 3515 San Pablo Ave.

The source of this story is media reltations office of District 2 City Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan.

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

Alameda County

Oakland Acquisition Company’s Acquisition of County’s Interest in Coliseum Property on the Verge of Completion

The Board of Supervisors is committed to closing the deal expeditiously, and County staff have worked tirelessly to move the deal forward on mutually agreeable terms. The parties are down to the final details and, with the cooperation of OAC and Coliseum Way Partners, LLC, the Board will take a public vote at an upcoming meeting to seal this transaction.

Published

1 year ago

January 11, 2025

Oakland Post

Alameda County Board of Supervisors Chairman David Haubert. Official photo.

Special to The Post

The County of Alameda announced this week that a deal allowing the Oakland Acquisition Company, LLC, (“OAC”) to acquire the County’s 50% undivided interest in the Oakland- Alameda County Coliseum complex is in the final stages of completion.

Oakland has already finalized a purchase and sale agreement with OAC for its interest in the property. OAC’s acquisition of the County’s property interest will achieve two longstanding goals of the County:

The Oakland-Alameda Coliseum complex will finally be under the control of a sole owner with capacity to make unilateral decisions regarding the property; and
The County will be out of the sports and entertainment business, free to focus and rededicate resources to its core safety net

In an October 2024 press release from the City of Oakland, the former Oakland mayor described the sale of its 50% interest in the property as an “historic achievement” stating that the transaction will “continue to pay dividends for generations to come.”

The Board of Supervisors is pleased to facilitate single-entity ownership of this property uniquely centered in a corridor of East Oakland that has amazing potential.

“The County is committed to bringing its negotiations with OAC to a close,” said Board President David Haubert.