Thousands Vietnamese Fishermen Protest Chinese Aggression in East Sea by Vu Quoc Ngu May 9, 2014 Thousands of Vietnamese fishermen in the central province of Quang Ngai on May 9 gathered on Ly Son Island to protest the Chinese deployment of the $1 billion HD oilrig in Vietnam’s waters and use of powered water cannon to attack vessels of the Vietnam Coast Guard, state media reported. The protest took place two days after Vietnam held an international press conference in Hanoi to condemn the Chinese newly aggressive move which aims to solidify its illegal claim of nearly the entire East Sea, including two Vietnamese archipelagos Hoang Sa (Paracels) and Truong Sa (Spratlys). The Chinese deployment of the oilrig and warships and civil ships as well as attack against Vietnam’s ships in the Vietnamese waters are serious violations of Vietnam’s sovereignty in the East Sea, threatening normal fishing of the local farmers, said Nguyen Hong, 39, one of protestors. Nguyen Quoc Chinh, president of fisheries association of An Hai commune on Ly Son Island, said Hoang Sa and Truong Sa belong to Vietnam. Ly Son fishermen ask China to respect Vietnam’s sovereignty in Hoang Sa and withdraw all ships and the oilrig out of Vietnam’s waters, he said. Farmers on Ly Son Island expressed their determination to continue working in Vietnam’s traditional fishing grounds as well as protect the country’s sovereignty. The anti-China protest on Ly Son Island is the first reaction of Vietnamese after China deployed the oilrig and 80 ships, including missile warship and helicopter to Vietnam’s waters just 119 nautical miles from Ly Son Island and Vietnam’s coast in early May. In 2011, thousands of Vietnamese held 11 consecutive demonstrations in Sundays in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City to protest China when Chinese ships cut exploration cables of the state-run PetroVietnam’s ships when they were working in the Vietnam’s exclusive economic zone. In 2012-2013, hundreds of Vietnamese also gathered in the capital city of Hanoi to protest the Chinese violations of Vietnam’s sovereignty in the East Sea. However, some protests were violently suppressed by the communist government which prioritizes comprehensive strategic partnership with Beijing. Both Vietnam and China claim sovereignty over Hoang Sa and Truong Sa. Vietnam has peacefully administered the two archipelagos since the 17th century while China militarily attacked the first archipelago and some islands of the second archipelago from Vietnam between 1974 and 1988 and still occupies them. Taiwan, Malaysia, the Philippines and Brunei also claim partly Truong Sa.
Posted on: Fri, 09 May 2014 11:44:10 +0000
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