Suchergebnisse

States as international persons — State succession — Continuity of the law — Dismemberment of States — Changes in law by parent State subsequent to accession to independence by constituent part — Changes affecting private rights — French Protectorate in Indochina — French Union — Accession of Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam to independence — Application of French legislation providing for compensation for war damage in Indochina — French legislation authorizing exclusion of nationals of independent States from compensation — Whether applicable to existing claims — The law of France.

The question of a national identity for Vietnam has long plagued historians, both Vietnamese and foreign. Some see Vietnam throughout its pre-modern history as a minor appendage of the Chinese Empire, one whose culture and institutions are so thoroughly influenced by the Chinese tradition that they evade meaningful individual scrutiny. A few apply the tools of Sinology in such a way as to reach conclusions which, while cogent in themselves, cannot escape the confines of their methodology. Others, including a majority of scholars from Vietnam itself, reject the former view and are continuously searching for evidence to demonstrate the uniqueness of the Vietnamese experience. There is little merit in the a priori assumptions of either school, but this does not invalidate the question. It would be of particular interest to know not simply whether some significant differences existed between Vietnamese and Chinese institutions at various points throughout history but whether these institutional differences had a significant bearing on a sense of nationalism and whether such differences resulted at least partially from a selfconception on the part of Vietnamese thinkers, one consciously held and pursued. The Binh Ngo Dai Cao provides us with some intriguing clues. It is, as well, a narrative document of great literary worth and the subject of constant allusion, the background of which could bear illumination for purely historical interest.

Vietnam's attitudes towards Australia. Vietnamese standpoint about ending hostilities in Southeast Asia. Desire of the Labour government of Australia to improve relations with Vietnam, while maintaining its close ties with the ASEAN countries. (DÜI-Sen)