With two days to spare, Assemblyman Tri Ta sent a formal letter to Anaheim Mayor Ashleigh Aitken last Thursday urging the city to pull the plug on a Vietnamese government-backed business forum scheduled to take place at the Anaheim Convention Center this Tuesday.

The Vietnam – United States Innovation & Investment Forum, organized by Vietnam's National Innovation Center — an agency under the country's Ministry of Finance — and the Embassy of Vietnam in the United States, is set for March 17 from 1:30 to 4:00 p.m. Vietnam's Ambassador to the United States, H.E. Nguyen Quoc Dzung, is listed as a featured speaker.

The venue sits less than ten miles from Little Saigon, home to one of the largest Vietnamese-American communities outside Vietnam — a community built largely by refugees who fled the communist government after the Fall of Saigon in 1975.

For Ta, that proximity is the point.

What the Letter Says

"I want to share my concern about Anaheim hosting an event organized in partnership with the government of Vietnam, including with the Vietnamese Ambassador to the United States," Ta wrote in the March 13 letter, addressed to Mayor Aitken at Anaheim City Hall.

Ta cited the Vietnamese government's ongoing human rights record — restrictions on free speech, imprisonment of political dissidents, and persecution of religious groups — as grounds for Anaheim to refuse the city's convention center as a venue.

"These issues are well known and remain a source of pain for many Vietnamese Americans, especially those who fled this authoritarian regime following the Fall of Saigon," he wrote.

Ta framed the request as consistent with Anaheim's values: "Anaheim has an opportunity to stand up for human rights and global freedom by refusing to provide a platform for a regime that continues to silence dissent and imprison its critics."

He signed the letter on behalf of "the Vietnamese American diaspora in Orange County."

Ta's History on This Issue

Ta, a Republican who represents the 70th Assembly District — which encompasses much of the Little Saigon corridor in Westminster and Garden Grove — was born in Saigon before his family fled Vietnam. His opposition to the current Hanoi government is longstanding and on the record.

In 2019, while serving as Mayor of Westminster, Ta and allies pushed through a city council resolution accusing the Vietnamese government of improperly interfering in local politics. The move triggered a political firestorm and a recall attempt — which voters rejected by nearly 60 percent.

More recently, Ta made news after the Chinese Consulate contacted his office to demand he remove a photo taken with Taiwan's Director General. He told them no.

The Forum Organizers

The Vietnam National Innovation Center describes itself as an agency established to support Vietnam's transition to a knowledge-based economy, with particular emphasis on attracting foreign technology investment and building public-private research partnerships. The forum's stated agenda includes sessions on Vietnam as a destination for strategic technology industries, high-tech manufacturing, and expanding research and development cooperation with U.S. firms.

Strategic partners listed for the event include Azurich Capital, Viglacera, and EXCEL Services Corporation. The Global Electronics Association is listed as an endorsing organization.

As of publication, it is unclear whether the City of Anaheim has responded to Ta's letter or taken any action regarding the event.