Kính göûi

Baø Minh Ñöùc Hoaøi Trinh

14714 Purdy Str.

Midway City CA 92655 USA

Thöa baø,

Ngaøy 30.7.2000 toâi ñaõ coù thö ñeán baø ñeå phuùc ñaùp laù thö cuûa baø ngaøy 17.7.2000, traû lôøi töøng ñieåm moät nhöõng ñieàu baø neâu ra trong thö cuûa baø nhaèm traùnh moät söï ngoài laïi vôùi nhau ñeå giaûi quyeát cuoäc khuûng hoaûng trong Vaên Buùt Vieät Nam Haûi Ngoaïi. Töø ñoù ñeán nay, toâi chöa nhaän ñöôïc moät laù thö naøo khaùc töø baø, chæ ñöôïc bieát laø baø ñaõ coù vaên thö cho oâng toång thö kyù Terry Carlbom cuûa Vaên Buùt Quoác Teá xin ñöôïc baàu baèng thö.

Do vaên thö oâng Carlbom traû lôøi baø ñeà ngaøy 7.9.2000, maø oâng ta ñaõ coù nhaõ yù göûi cho toâi moät phoù baûn, toâi môùi ñöôïc bieát laø phe baø laïi saép söûa coù moät Ñaïi Hoäi khaùc nöõa, khaùc vôùi "Ñaïi Hoäi Florida" cuûa oâng Nguyeãn Ñöùc An, ñeå baàu laïi caùi gì vaø ôû ñaâu, döïa treân Ñieàu Leä naøo thì ñeán oâng Carlbom, ngöôøi nhaän ñöôïc thö baø, cuõng muø tòt. Baèng chöùng laø nhöõng caâu trong thö cuûa oâng Carlbom nhö: "May I now ask when your organisation foresees that your next Convention will take place? Has a time and place for your next Convention been fixed already, and if so, when and where? Has it been discussed or decided on already at your last Convention? Who has the authority to convene this meeting?" Bao nhieâu caâu hoûi chính ñaùng maø khoâng nhöõng Vaên Buùt Quoác Teá (qua oâng Carlbom) muoán ñöôïc bieát maø toâi chaéc chaén haàu heát moïi ngöôøi nhö toâi—trong Vaên Buùt Vieät Nam Haûi Ngoaïi—cuõng noùng loøng muoán ñöôïc bieát!

Coøn nhö baàu baèng thö baûo ñaûm qua böu ñieän thì cuõng xin baø vui loøng cho bieát laø Ñieàu Leä naøo cuûa Vaên Buùt Vieät Nam Haûi Ngoaïi cho pheùp ta laøm chuyeän naøy? Hay ñoù chæ laø yù kieán cuûa oâng Sôn Tuøng ngaøy tröôùc vaø cuûa oâng Nguyeãn Ñöùc An môùi ñaây roài baø töï yù xem laø coù theå aùp ñaët leân treân caû Ñieàu Leä cuûa VBVNHN? Chính nhöõng thaéc maéc naøy ñaõ laøm khoå taâm khoâng bieát bao ngöôøi coù thieän chí trong VBVNHN cuûa chuùng ta, vì hoï khoâng coøn bieát ñöôøng naøo maø laàn cho ra ñöôïc manh moái cuûa nhöõng ñeà nghò hay haønh ñoäng maø phe baø cöù töï yù tieán haønh. Vaäy xin baø sôùm cho bieát yù kieán.

Mrs. Minh Duc Hoai Trinh

Vietnamese Writers Abroad

14714 Purdy Streci Midways City,

CA 92655 - USA

Mr. Dang Van Nham

Hallandsparken 150 – DK

2630 Tåstrup Denmark

cc to M. Tran Thanh Hiep

63, Rue de la Grange aux Belles

75010 Paris - France

Oct 2, 2000

Dear Mrs. Minh Duc Hoai Trinh and Mr. Dang Van Nham,

Thank you Mrs. Minh Duc Hoai Trinh for the details in letter of Sept 23. I note the dates you mention - a Convention planned for March 2002, and the Meeting proposed for Nov 25, 2000. My thanks also to Mr. Dang Van Nham for letter of Sept 22 with comments.

We have now received news that the Philippine Centre considers itself unable to go ahead with the International PEN Congress of 2001, intended to take place in Manila. We are now approaching the other Centres in the Pacifle Rim area to try to locate a new venue for next years Congress. We have indications this might be successful, but it would probably mean that the Congress will not take place in March-early April, but later on, maybe June-July. This actualiv can give us slightly more time to settle the maybe complicated process of reunifiéation ahead of us.

To begin with, the cail for a Meeting already for November this year seems premature from my point of view. Although I appreciate your intentions, I would first now like to clarify even more details.

Although ‚postal balloting‘ is not mentioned in existing „Rules" of your organisation, I think we have to consider ourselves in the situation of convening a „Constitutional Convention".

The purpose of this Convention is to seleet the constitutional rules this assembly wants to be governed by in the future. In order to convene this Constitutional Convention, we must first establish who the voters are. Secondly, each legitimate voter must be given an equal and fair chance of participating. Thirdly, the altematives the voters are asked to choose between must be clear and simple.

As we take into consideration that the electorate in this case has a vast geographical spread, the only technique possible seems to be by postal ballot.

I understand the Resolution of the General Assembly of International PEN gives me the mandate to pursue this line of procedure. But I want to stress that in doing so I wish to be guided by your advice. At the same time, I do not feel that lack of participation, or undue delays in cooperation, should be allowed to bring the foreseen process to a halt. lt is my intention to get the Vietnam Writers Abroad Centre back on track in a decisive manner.

My concrete question pertains to the establishment of the basic membership numbers. These numbers will obviously have changed since the fraetional split, and I expeet that new members have been taken on in all parties. Other chapters have undertone change, or maybe even ceased to exist. lt is thus necessary - hopefully with a minimum of arbitrariness - to decide where we place the basic counting line.

Now, after the Centre was fonnally declared dormant, the London Office decided that it could not accept international dues offered from the Vietnamese Writers Abroad, as this might have been taken for a recognition which would have been inappropriate. But I suppose the various Chapters themselves have had a membership fee? Could we define the line by saying that only Members of Chapters that have paid their individual dues in full for the calendar years of 1998 and 1999 will be recognised as legitimate member-voters?

If so, I propose that the count of the electorate for what I will call the Re-establishing Constitutional Convention (RCC) be set at registeret Members in any Chapter as per January I st 1999.

I would now like all parties involved to present their inventory list of Members as per Jan I st 1999. I am kindly requesting that lists containing the narne and address of cach Member - in order to prepare ballot papers and mailings - be prepared and submitted to the International Secretariat. I propose that the closing date for submission of these list be set to Wednesday November I st, 5 p.m. London time.

During October, I expect to be in further dialogue with all parties on the questions to be addressed in the forthcorffing ballot. Your comments are invited.