The boat was full of silverfish...

(Baonghean) - "It's sunny today, but calm!" - Ms. Nguyen Thi Lieu, a logistics partner for fishing boats in Lach Van (Dien Ngoc, Dien Chau), glanced out at the sea while adjusting her headscarf, then continued busily transporting ice, rice, and food supplies onto the boats. With many boats having a successful fishing trip recently, Ms. Lieu had to prepare a little more for this trip so the boats could venture further out to sea…

The boat returns to Lach Van fishing port (Dien Chau).

Amidst the bustling activity of boats coming and going from the harbor, everyone was busy with their own tasks. Fortunately, I met Ms. Lieu, a talkative person, to chat with. The people of Dien Ngoc coastal commune have a stable life thanks to the successful development of their traditional fishing industry. Onshore services are also developing, and many families combine fishing with onshore services, quickly escaping poverty. Average households have risen to a comfortable or wealthy status. Ms. Nguyen Thi Lieu is a prime example. For the past few years, her husband's health has declined, preventing him from going to sea as before. She single-handedly struggles to raise two children who are of school age, and there have been times when the family lacked food. As fellow fishermen, they didn't abandon each other in times of hardship. Several boat owners in the commune discussed and agreed to provide Ms. Lieu with a stable job: daily, she supplies salt, ice, and food to the boats going out to sea. From her work in logistics, she observed and immediately thought of selling fresh seafood retail to restaurants. With such diligence and hard work, earning a little extra profit each day, Ms. Lieu became a dynamic woman in the Dien Ngoc fishing village, and when she had accumulated a considerable amount of capital, she became a key buyer of seafood to supply the local market...

Fishermen in Dien Ngoc are investing in building new boats to venture further out to sea.

At the wharf, several large fishing boats were hoisting their flags, ready to set sail. We encountered an old man who had just disembarked from a fishing boat, standing thoughtfully on the wharf like an old general bidding farewell to a young army about to go into battle. He was fisherman Le Sy Vinh (60 years old, from Dong Loc hamlet). It turned out he was a very open person. He said: “The fishermen of Dien Ngoc have a long tradition of fishing. But building large boats with hundreds of horsepower isn't common yet. Even so, this is the main fishing season, and with the government's encouragement to go out to sea, the people are very enthusiastic.” – What does that mean? – “It means it doesn't matter whether it's offshore or inshore. Except for days with storms or rough seas, we should seize every hour and every day to head out to sea and set sail. We must compete with the fishermen in the Hoang Sa and Truong Sa seas!” – Mr. Vinh explained.

Yes, these days, wherever you go in the coastal communes, you see the same spirit among the fishermen in our province. Both those at sea and those on shore are preparing for each fishing trip more thoroughly, with a greater determination to overcome difficulties. And it seems that the luck of fishing grounds isn't the most important thing; instead, the fishermen are always anxiously awaiting developments in the sacred territorial waters of our homeland that are being violated. Mr. Le Sy Vinh continued, "When going out to sea, we focus on fishing grounds with plenty of fish and shrimp. In our country's sea and sky, as long as we find schools of fish, we don't mind going out to sea no matter how far. Nowadays, our fishermen hope to go as far as possible… For example, the day China started aggression at sea, the commune officials held a meeting to encourage people to continue going out to sea and clinging to the sea. Many people said, 'We don't worry about that. We go out to sea to fish, but if necessary, we're also ready to go out to sea to fight the enemy. It's our sea, our source of livelihood, how can we not cling to it and protect it?'"

It was wonderful to hear Mr. Vinh share his story. Even more delightful was learning that fishermen in Dien Ngoc, in their sixties like Mr. Vinh, are now setting an example for the younger generation, competing to make at least four fishing trips a month… For over a month now, Mr. Vinh's two boats, each with a capacity of over 600 horsepower, have been at sea for 6 to 8 days, with the most recent trip lasting 10 days. Every trip has been successful, mainly with valuable export seafood like shrimp, crab, squid, and Chilean fish. He also boasted that his children built sturdy, spacious houses thanks to the sea. He then explained why he wasn't participating in this particular trip: “My close friend, from our days working as a kitchen assistant at sea, is building a new pair of boats, so I'm staying home to help out a few days to get some good luck. I'm not going, but I have to come here to advise and encourage my children and fellow fishermen to keep going, to keep fishing. If needed, just go out and join the sea for our country!”

It's easy to catch the enthusiasm of the fishermen of Dien Ngoc who are dedicated to the sea. And perhaps it's because this spirit of staying at sea is so strong that the sea is supporting them, but in recent fishing trips, every Dien Ngoc boat has had a successful catch, with increased yields and higher value of the fish caught. The boat owners and their fellow fishermen are very happy. The women on shore welcome the fishing boats back to the harbor, and seeing the holds full of silver fish fills them with joy and pride in their men who go to sea.

Around noon, we returned to the Dien Ngoc Commune People's Committee headquarters as arranged by the Vice Chairman in charge of economic affairs, Nguyen Van Dung. He briefly shared some good news from the commune's fishing trips in the first six months of the year: Dien Ngoc continues to maintain its position as the locality with the largest number of fishing boats in Dien Chau district. The entire commune has 398 boats, including 60 boats with 90 horsepower or more, and hundreds of mid-shore and near-shore boats, with a current capacity to harvest 13,000 tons of various seafood per year. In the first six months of 2014 alone, they harvested nearly 7,000 tons, an increase of 600 tons compared to the same period last year. The fishermen are preparing to replace old boats by investing in building new ones. Currently, six pairs of boats have just been completed and set sail for their first trip, catching large quantities of fish, estimated at nearly 4 tons of various seafood per boat; the average income for fishermen at sea is 5-6 million VND per month.

In Dien Ngoc, many families own large fishing boats. Boat owner Ngo Tri Dong in Ngoc Tan hamlet has owned a pair of offshore fishing boats for nearly a decade, providing regular employment for 20 workers, with an income of 6 million VND per person per month. Dong's boats consistently operate in distant fishing grounds. On one occasion, while fishing in a shared fishing area, Dong's boat was threatened by a Chinese vessel, but the crew remained unfazed, calmly carrying out their work while also stationing people on deck to keep watch. Ultimately, the Chinese vessel was unable to harm them. Dong says that his two boats generate hundreds of millions of VND in profit annually after deducting expenses. The best part is that he also provides employment for the workers on his boats and for the women who run businesses in Lach Van. He also focused on coordinating with local authorities to have crew members participate in maritime rescue teams, ensuring that long-range and medium-range walkie-talkies and mobile phones were always ready on board, promptly informing local authorities and Border Guard Post 152 about the situation at sea whenever there were any unusual signs…

According to Vice Chairman Nguyen Van Dung, Dien Ngoc commune currently accounts for 30% of the total maritime militia force in Dien Chau district. This means that Dien Ngoc fishermen venturing out to sea must now have even greater awareness and determination regarding the task of protecting maritime sovereignty. To further emphasize this significant point, we met with Lieutenant Colonel Truong Dai Doan, Commander of the Dien Chau District Military Command. The comrade stated: “The Dien Ngoc marine militia platoon is one of six marine militia platoons nationwide, selected by the Ministry of National Defense as a model for training. When directly engaged in offshore fishing, the Dien Ngoc marine militia will work alongside the Navy, Coast Guard, and Border Guard Post 152 to maintain control of fishing grounds, contributing to the preservation of Vietnam's maritime territory and islands. Every day, around 4 PM, the District Military Command and the eight coastal communes monitor the activities of the marine militia forces in the sea areas using Icom long-range communication equipment. After each fishing trip, the District Military Command and the commune authorities invite the boat owners, who are also members of the militia platoon, to report on the situation and then assign subsequent tasks…”

Protecting maritime sovereignty through peaceful and legal means, even without "fishing nets or guns," the spirit of staying at sea and proactively monitoring all situations at sea of ​​the fishermen and maritime militia of Dien Ngoc further strengthens the hope of successful fishing trips with holds full of silver fish during the main fishing season.

Text: DS - TH, Photos: Canh Yen - Dinh Sam