Chinese ships attack Vietnamese fishing boats
6 times over 19 days
Many of the Chinese vessels that have been deployed to guard China’s illegal oil rig in Vietnam’s waters since May 1 have rammed and fired water cannons at Vietnamese fishing boats and assaulted Vietnamese fishermen many times, the Fisheries Resources Surveillance Department has said.
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Over 19 days from May 7 to 26, these foreign vessels launched six such attacks on Vietnamese fishing boats, injuring fishermen and causing damage to their property, the department said.
On May 7, in an area about 10 nautical miles north-northwest of Linh Con Island, part of Vietnam’s Hoang Sa (Paracel) archipelago, a Vietnamese fishing boat, QNg 96416, with 16 fishermen on board was attacked by Chinese vessel 1241.
The foreign ship fired its water cannon at the local vessel and threw hammers, bolts and bottles at it.
The Chinese vessel also fired tracers to the Vietnamese ship and used tools to destroy the local boat’s communication and navigation system.
Another Chinese ship came from nowhere and crashed into the fishing ship, breaking its right side and the glass windows of its cabin.
The total damage was estimated at VND890 million (US$42,000).
Another case happened on May 16 evening, when a Vietnamese fishing boat from central Quang Ngai Province, QNg 90205 TS, was suddenly approached by Chinese vessel 306.
Many crewmembers of the Chinese boat got aboard the Vietnamese ship and beat Vietnamese fishermen, causing serious injuries to two of them, Nguyen Huyen Le Anh and Nguyen Tan Hai.
They also destroyed most of the assets on the ship.
At 9:00 pm the same day, Vietnamese vessel QNg 95431, owned by Nguyen Van Tan, also of Quang Ngai Province, was operating with six divers on board off Phu Lam Island, part of Hoang Sa, when it was blocked by a Chinese vessel whose crewmembers threw stones at it, causing some damage.
Also the same night, another fishing boat from Quang Ngai, QNg 90045, with a crew of nine suffered the same when it was fishing off Hoang Sa.
A day later, Chinese vessel 21102 got close to another Vietnamese fishing boat QNg 96011 TS with 13 fishermen on board. The Chinese side then took away many assets and fishing tools worth VND50 million ($2,358) in total.
The attack took place in an area about 31 nautical miles from Tri Ton Island of Vietnam’s Hoang Sa archipelago.
Most recently, at 4:00 pm on May 26, Chinese fishing boat 11209 crashed into Vietnamese fishing ship DNa 90152, from the central city of Da Nang, with 10 fishermen on board.
The hard hit sank the local ship, and some Vietnamese fishing boats operating nearby managed to save all the 10 crew members.
The waters where the Vietnamese ship sank are within Vietnam’s exclusive economic zone and continental shelf and the traditional fishing ground of Vietnamese fishermen near Hoang Sa.
On Tuesday, the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned a representative of the Chinese Embassy in Hanoi to deliver a diplomatic note protesting China’s attacks on Vietnamese fishermen in the East Vietnam Sea.
“Once again, Vietnam demands that China stop inhuman acts that have seriously violated the lives, property and legitimate interests of Vietnamese fishermen, respect international law and strictly punish related individuals, not repeat similar actions, and pay satisfactory compensation to the Vietnamese fishermen affected,” the diplomatic note reads.
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