On the afternoon of September 17, at the regular press conference of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, answering reporters' questions about citizen protection for 10 Vietnamese fishermen who encountered difficulties in Perak, Malaysia and returned home safely, Spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Pham Thu Hang said:
On August 27, immediately after receiving information from the Office of the People's Committee of Ca Mau province requesting support for 10 fishermen working in Perak state, the Vietnamese Embassy in Malaysia urgently verified the information and coordinated with local functional agencies to contact the group of fishermen directly".
According to Ms. Pham Thu Hang, since contacting 10 fishermen, the Vietnamese Embassy in Malaysia has arranged vehicles to take the group to a safe location in Kuala Lumpur, arranging accommodation and living.
At the same time, the Embassy carried out the necessary procedures to issue papers, supported the group to report to the local police and completed exit procedures with the Malaysian immigration agency. After that, the whole group was taken to the airport by Embassy staff and completed procedures to return to Vietnam safely.
The incident is also a reminder to Vietnamese workers to be cautious in the face of invitations to work abroad for "light jobs, high salaries". Before deciding, it is necessary to verify the recruiter, workplace, contract, salary and living and working conditions; do not believe in verbal promises or transfer money to brokers that are not transparent.
When abroad, workers need to keep copies of papers, maintain contact with their families and promptly notify local authorities and Vietnamese representative offices if they are threatened, have their passports kept or forced to work. To receive support in case of need, Vietnamese citizens should contact the hotline number of the Consular Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Vietnamese representative offices abroad 24/7.
Previously, according to VNA, the group of 10 fishermen went to Malaysia to work as hired laborers for a fishing boat owner from February 2026. During the working process, their entire passports were seized, they were often not provided with adequate food, drinking water and essential living conditions, and at times they were starved for many days. Due to extreme poverty, the fishermen contacted their families for help and sent petitions to Vietnamese functional agencies requesting help.
