Many people were seriously injured.
At around 9:15 p.m. on September 30, fishing boat QNg 95739 TS and 10 fishermen arrived at Sa Ky port, Binh Chau commune, Binh Son district, Quang Ngai province. As soon as the boat docked, authorities visited and provided first aid to the fishermen.
The reason the fishing boat had to abandon its trip halfway was because while fishing in Vietnam's Hoang Sa archipelago, the fishermen were beaten by people on a foreign ship.
Immediately after returning, four seriously injured crew members were taken to Quang Ngai General Hospital for emergency treatment. The remaining six crew members were questioned by authorities to investigate the cause of the incident.
Sharing with reporters, fisherman Huynh Tien Cong (47 years old), residing in Tinh Hoa commune, Quang Ngai city, recounted: “On September 29, two foreign iron ships approached from the stern of the fishing boat. They boarded the fishing boat and immediately started beating the fishermen. I was beaten on both arms and legs with sticks about 1 meter long. We did not dare to resist and could only lie down and endure the beating… When they finished beating us, they forced the fishermen to the bow of the boat, forced them to hold their heads with both hands, kneel down, then covered the fishermen with tarps so no one could see anything.”
Talking to reporters, Captain Nguyen Thanh Bien (40 years old), residing in Chau Thuan Bien village, Binh Chau commune, recounted that at around 6am on September 29, fishermen discovered an iron ship with the number 301. At around 10am, about 40 people on the iron ship climbed onto the fishing boat, each holding an iron rod and continuously beating the fishermen. "At that time, I tried to run towards the bow of the ship, but two people held me and beat me so hard that I lost consciousness, and it was about an hour later that I regained consciousness," Captain Bien recalled.
Full of injuries, damage of 500 million VND
According to the fishermen, at around 1pm on September 29, the people on the iron boat began to get off the boat, leaving only one interpreter and about five people behind. At this time, the interpreter told the fishing boat to return to Vietnam. When the fishermen checked, all the fishing gear and machinery on the boat had been taken away, leaving only a GPS device for the fishermen to return to shore.
Immediately after the 10 fishermen arrived at Sa Ky port, Binh Chau commune, Quang Ngai Border Guard force took statements from the fishermen. Accordingly, most of the equipment on the boat was smashed, and about 4 tons of seafood were also stolen, with an estimated loss of about 500 million VND.
On the evening of September 30, Mr. Ung Dinh Hien - Vice Chairman of Binh Son District People's Committee - arrived very early to wait for the fishing boat to come ashore. On behalf of the district leaders, Mr. Hien visited and encouraged the fishermen on fishing boat QNg 95739 TS and gave 14 million VND to encourage the fishermen.
As reported by Lao Dong Newspaper, at around 4:40 p.m. on September 29, through Icom equipment, the authorities were able to contact Mr. Nguyen Thanh Bien, a resident of Binh Chau Commune. Mr. Bien said that his fishing boat was attacked and beaten by a foreign ship, causing 3 crew members to have broken arms and legs, and 7 crew members to be injured. The ship was able to contact the Maritime Search and Rescue Coordination Center Region II and the authorities to receive rescue support.
Fishing boat QNg-95739-TS is 21 meters long, 760 horsepower, owned by Ms. Nguyen Thi Dung (born in 1984), and captained by Mr. Nguyen Thanh Bien (born in 1984). Both reside in Chau Thuan Bien village, Binh Chau commune. This fishing boat left Sa Ky Border Control Station/Sa Ky Port Border Guard Station at 10:45 a.m. on September 13, 2024, registered to fish in Hoang Sa archipelago, with 10 crew members on board.
