Chinese Maritime Safety Officers Beat Vietnamese Fishermen During South China Sea Interdiction, Say Officials

U.S. Naval Institute ^ | OCTOBER 7, 2024 | AARON-MATTHEW LARIOSA

[Retain Mike]

An incident in the South China Sea last month saw 10 Vietnamese fishermen beaten by officers from China’s Maritime Safety Administration near the Paracel Islands, reported local media.

According to Vietnamese accounts, Maritime Safety Administration vessels 101 and 301 from the Sansha City United Law Enforcement Unit surrounded the civilian vessel on the morning of Sept. 29. Three rubber hulled inflated boats were deployed by the patrol ships to board the fishing vessel, which was attempting to escape. Despite attempts from the QNg 95739 TS to prevent the boarding. Their efforts were unsuccessful.

Four of the Vietnamese fishermen were severely injured during the incident, which saw up to 40 Chinese officers board the boat to attack the crew with metal rods. The beatings resulted in broken limbs and even knocked the captain of the vessel, Nguyen Thanh Bien, unconscious according to an account from VnExpress International.

“The question here is not Vietnam’s decision to publicize the incident, but rather China’s motivation for engaging in such aggressive behavior,” Duan Dang, a Vietnam-based maritime security analyst, told USNI News regarding Hanoi’s approach to the incident.

Dang explained that despite the severity of the Sept. 29 attack, these incidents and other actions by Beijing within the Vietnamese exclusive economic zone are not new, saying that “China’s aggressive tactics extend to regularly deploying survey vessels into Vietnamese waters, exerting undue pressure on Vietnam to halt its legitimate oil and gas projects within its own exclusive economic zone and continental shelf. Moreover, China often threatens and attacks Vietnamese fishermen.”

[Retain Mike]

The Western Pacific has sure got a more interesting. Dodging the Chi Com and Taiwanese fishing fleets was about exciting as it got for our ship on the way to and from Vietnam, except for avoiding the carriers, escorts, and auxiliaries at Yankee Station. Here are the latest articles from the U. S. Naval Institute. Unless you are a member, you may not be able to look at all the links before they decide to exclude you.

[Regulator]

Hey, the NV fought to be under China’s boot for two decades, coulda made a deal with us at any point.

Let them live with the consequences. Now they’re the little guy on the block and nobody gonna come help them.

[Enterprise]

Oh now, it was a friendly beating.

[HombreSecreto]

Everybody was Kung Fu fighting...