Vietnamese professor and doctor Nguyen Thi Ngoc Phuong has become a laureate of the 2024 Ramon Magsaysay Award, internationally regarded as the Asian version of the Nobel Prize, for dedicating her life to studying the harmful health impact of Agent Orange (AO) and helping seek justice for victims of this toxic defoliant. 

The Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation (RMAF) is an international wholly independent non-profit organization based in Manila, Philippines.

It aims to recognize and honor individuals and organizations in Asia for their exceptional contributions to public service and social justice.

RMAF was established in 1957 in honor of Ramon Magsaysay, a Filipino president who died in a plane crash the same year.

In 1958, the foundation began the annual Ramon Magsaysay Award program, pursuing the objective of honoring the greatness of spirit in selfless service to the people of Asia.

Prof. Dr. Nguyen Thi Ngoc Phuong, 80, has devoted her life to researching the devastating impacts of AO/dioxin specific to general and reproductive health.

Phuong is a leader in seeking justice for Vietnamese victims of the toxic herbicide used by U.S. forces in the war in Vietnam.

Presently, she is the director of Tu Du Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital and chairs the Vietnam-U.S. Friendship Association in Ho Chi Minh City.

According to RMAF, Prof. Dr. Phuong became a doctor during the war, specializing in obstetrics and gynecology, and carried out extensive research into the long-term effects of AO/dioxin.

She first encountered the evil of AO/dioxin delivering newborns with severe birth defects which no one knew were caused by AO/dioxin.

Witnessing this, she vowed to “dedicate her life to uncovering the truth about AO, seeking justice for its victims, and aiding the afflicted through her research and work with the Vietnam Association of Victims of Agent Orange/Dioxin (VAVA),” according to RMAF. 

The Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation believes Phuong's “work serves as a dire warning for the world to avoid war at all costs as its tragic repercussions can reach far into the future.”

The foundation also reiterated that Dr. Phuong has offered evidence that “it can never be too late to right the wrongs of war and gain justice and relief for its hapless victims."

The Manila Times cited Susanna B. Afan, president of the award foundation, as saying, “This award has celebrated those who challenge the status quo with integrity by courageously confronting systemic injustices, transforming critical sectors through groundbreaking solutions that drive societal progress, and addressing pressing global issues with unwavering resilience.”

The four other 2024 Ramon Magsaysay Award winners are Karma Phuntsho, a Bhutanese former monk and scholar, Farwiza Farhan, an Indonesian forest conservationist, Miyazaki Hayao, the famous founder of Studio Ghibli, and the Thai organization Rural Doctors Movement, representing a unified force of Thai doctors advocating for healthcare in rural areas.

To date, the ‘Asia’s Nobel Prizes’ have been presented to 322 individuals and 26 organizations.

Over 1961-71, U.S. troops conducted 19,905 missions spraying a total of more than 80 million liters of toxic chemicals, 61 percent of which was AO containing 366kg of dioxin, on nearly 26,000 hamlets and villages that covered 3.06 million hectares, or roughly one-fourth of the area of southern Vietnam, according to VAVA.

An estimated 4.8 million Vietnamese people were exposed to AO/dioxin during the war and over three million have suffered illnesses from it, the agency said.

Every year, Vietnam earmarks a budget of more than VND 10 trillion (US$402 million) to cover AO/dioxin victim expenses, monthly allowances, healthcare, and functional rehabilitation, as well as support for areas still severely affected by the toxic herbicide.

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