Clinton Pays Tribute to Vietnam Dead

H A N O I, Vietnam, Nov. 17 -- In the first live, nationally televised speech by a foreign head of state here, the first U.S. president to visit Vietnam since the war called for a “new chapter” in U.S.-Vietnamese relations.

In an unprecedented address in Hanoi today, Clinton paid tribute to those killed on both sides of the Vietnam War, which cost millions of lives — 58,000 U.S. soldiers and an estimated 3 million Vietnamese — and ended in 1975.

While a large portion of Clinton’s speech was devoted to the conflict the Vietnamese call the American War, he also suggested that Vietnam’s Communist leadership allow its people greater freedom.

“We cannot do anything about the past but what we can do is change the future,” he told students at the Vietnam National University.

While much American attention has focused on the 2,000 U.S. servicemen missing in action, Clinton also acknowledged the 300,000 Vietnamese soldiers and civilians still unaccounted for.

He thanked Hanoi for its help in recovering the remains of U.S. soldiers.

Lost in Translation

While most of Clinton’s uncontroversial remarks were rendered clearly, Reuters reported that the translation became hopelessly garbled when Clinton touched on human rights.

For example, Clinton’s words: “In our experience, guaranteeing the right to religious worship and the right to political dissent does not threaten the stability of the society; instead it builds people’s confidence in the fairness of the institution...”

Became the equivalent of: “According to our experience, the issue of allowing worshipping, allowing, (pause) that does not affect the regime but to improve our regime...”

Vietnamese who listened to the speech said the poor translation made Clinton’s remarks on human rights totally incomprehensible.

But embassy officials said they bore sole responsibility for the shoddy translation. “The translator was ours,” national security spokesman PJ Crowley, told ABCNEWS. “He was under the embassy’s employ. There was no deliberate attempt to distort the president’s message.”