BBC
Friday, 7 December, 2001, 17:07 GMT
Twenty dissidents in Vietnam have sent a letter to the country's leaders expressing dissatisfaction with a border agreement signed with China.
The dissidents say Vietnam has ceded an area of more than 700 square kilometres in Ha Giang and Lang Son province to its northern neighbour.
In a rare protest, they criticised the authorities for allegedly conceding too much territory in secret negotiations.
But government officials have hailed the signing of the land border treaty as a great achievement.
The dissidents are now calling on National Assembly members to urge a review of the agreement during the current session.
Correspondents say the National Assembly has effectively been a rubber-stamp body until now, but the dissidents hope they can pressure its members into exercising their powers.