Chinese teacher says ‘I Love Vietnam’

TUOI TRE

A Taiwanese (Chinese) lecturer at the Hanoi University of Foreign Languages has written a song in Vietnamese professing his love for Vietnam as a parting gift.

“Toi yeu Vietnam” (I Love Vietnam) by Do Van Duong (Vietnamese name), set to music by his son, a musician, has captivated many people’s hearts with its simple lyrics and emotive singing.

Sung in both Vietnamese and Chinese, the refrain goes “Toi yeu Vietnam/ Cam on Vietnam / Tran trong hen gap lai Vietnam!” (I love Vietnam / Thank you, Vietnam / See you again, Vietnam).

Duong, a native of Kaohsiung city, was a lecturer of Chinese, and is, according at least one of his students, a sentimental man.

Viet Dung, working at the university, added that though the teacher did not speak Vietnamese well, he loved and respected his students.

The images and video clips accompanying the song were shot by Duong during his travels around Vietnam and when he hung out with his students.

“Many Chinese consider Vietnam as their second home or even the only home. So, we respect them,” a netizen wrote on Facebook.

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Province sends SOS after Chinese threat at sea

Phu Yen's dispatch that was sent to the Foreign Ministry on June 2

Photo: Thanh Nien

Phu Yen has sent an emergency dispatch to the Foreign Ministry seeking help after four fishing boats based in the northern province were threatened by Chinese vessels Wednesday.

Three Chinese naval ships fired four shots near PY92305 TS owned by Le Van Giup, 49, of Tuy Hoa city and three other boats while they were operating in Vietnamese territorial waters, the dispatch said.

It described the location of the incident as being 8o 56’ 23'' north and 112o 45’ 31'' east, or just 15 nautical miles southeast off Da Dong Island in the Truong Sa (Spratlys) Archipelago. 

Several foreign navies, especially that of China, are strengthening their activities and organizing patrols in Vietnamese waters, claiming sovereignty over them.

They threaten Vietnamese fishing boats and prevent their operations, with a view to discouraging them from operating in their traditional areas, the dispatch said.

Phu Yen wants the Foreign Ministry to intervene with China and the other countries to protect the interests of its fishermen and at the same time safeguard the country’s sovereignty.

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Fishermen stand ground despite Chinese threats

Vietnamese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Nguyen Phuong Nga.

Photo: VNA

TUOITRENEWS

Vietnamese fishermen said they will never abandon their traditional fishing territory on the East Sea despite being threatened by Chinese surveillance ships and fishing boats in recent years.

The declaration stems from China’s disputed claim that it owns 80 percent of the East Sea, about 2.8 million square kilometers, which has also been claimed by Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Brunei and Vietnam.

To assert authority over the disputed area, which has been traditional fishing grounds for Vietnamese fishermen for centuries, Chinese authorities have dispatched armed ships to seize and arrest Vietnamese fishermen in an effort to scare them out of the waters.

The latest case was on May 26 when China sent three surveillance ships to cut the cables of a Vietnamese seismic vessel only 116 nautical miles offshore from Dai Lanh cape in the central Phu Yen province.

International law ruled the area within 200 nautical miles from the coast as an exclusive economic zone for Vietnam.

Chinese fishermen have also bullied their Vietnamese counterparts by threatening them with swords when they see each other. They have even called other ships to surround and intentionally crash into Vietnamese boats.

“Once my fishing boat cruised on an area Chinese ships were fishing, dozens of their men went on deck with knives and swords in hand, shouted and gestured that they will cut our throats,” said captain Nguyen Dinh Nha from Phu Yen.

Another captain Tran Van Hung also from Phu Yen said, “I have troubles with fishing boats from China everyday. Once when I was fishing, they came in a large fleet of around 30 ships and surrounded me. At the end of the fishing day I took back the net and withdrew, but on steering close to ships to escape, they came on deck and shouted noisily and threatened with knives.”

In order to fish more safely in their traditional fishing grounds, Vietnamese boats join together in groups of at least five so they can defend and assist one another, said fisherman Nguyen Van Viet from Phu Yen.

Encroachment in large herd

Fishermen have reported to the Vietnamese coast guard units that more Chinese fishing boats have been encroaching on Vietnam’s waters.

Da Nang fishermen Vo Thanh Luong said many Chinese fishing boats can be seen just 60 to 70 nautical miles from mainland Vietnam.

Records of Vietnamese coast guard unit 328 show that Chinese fishing ships have increasingly encroached on territorial waters of Vietnam in an organized manner.

However, specific details of the cases of violations have not been revealed.

Senior Lieutenant Nguyen Ngoc Ry from the Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelago told Tuoi Tre that China has sent 20 patrol ships to watch the disputed seas daily in Truong Sa and to chase and arrest Vietnamese fishing ships.

In response to China’s provocation, Vietnam’s Foreign Affairs Ministry spokeswoman Nguyen Phuong Nga told local media that the Vietnamese navy will take any necessary steps to defend its territory.

However, she has yet revealed specific measures that will be taken, except for the announcement that Vietnam has sent a diplomatic note of protest to the Chinese Embassy in Vietnam.

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