Strongly oppose China's unreasonable fishing ban in the East Sea
The Vietnam Fisheries Association strongly opposes China's action of issuing regulations banning fishing in the East Sea.
On May 4, the Vietnam Fisheries Association sent a dispatch to the Government Office, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Central Committee for Objections regarding China's promulgation of the Regulations on banning fishing in the East Sea in 2020.
The official dispatch of the Vietnam Fisheries Association clearly stated: According to information sites, China has announced "Regulations on banning fishing in the East Sea, the ban on fishing extends from the northern waters of the East Sea to 12 degrees North latitude, including part of the Gulf of Tonkin and the Hoang Sa archipelago under Vietnam's sovereignty, effective from May 1, 2020 to August 16, 2020".
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Vietnamese fishermen fishing in Hoang Sa fishing grounds (Vietnam). Photo: Thanh Nien |
According to the Vietnam Fisheries Association, this regulation violates the sovereignty over the Hoang Sa archipelago and Vietnam's sea areas, violates legal rights and interests, hinders Vietnamese fishermen's production at sea, and violates international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and related international legal documents. Recently, China also brazenly announced the establishment of two administrative agencies under the so-called "Sansha city" to illegally control Vietnam's Hoang Sa and Truong Sa archipelagos.
“The Vietnam Fisheries Association strongly protests China’s extremely unreasonable actions. This regulation has no legal value for the waters under Vietnam’s sovereignty. Vietnamese fishermen have the full right to fish in the waters under their sovereignty,” the dispatch stated.
The Vietnam Fisheries Association requests that the authorities take strong measures to protest and stop China's reckless actions; Regularly strengthen law enforcement forces at sea to support and protect Vietnamese fishermen when operating in Vietnam's waters.
With its functions and tasks, the Vietnam Fisheries Association will actively direct local fisheries associations and fisheries associations to proactively coordinate with relevant units to propagate to fishermen to understand and comply with legal regulations when fishing at sea; call on and mobilize fishermen to stay calm, confidently stick to the sea, boost production and resolutely exercise their legitimate rights, contributing to firmly protecting the sovereignty of the sea and islands of the Fatherland.