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STORY OF VIETNAMESE FISHERMEN WHO CAME BACK FROM THE WORLD OF DEATH
More than 7 days are passed but the fishermen who return from the hell in the distant sea, is still stunned because over 200 fishermen of 17 fishing ships were not only hit by storm called typhoon Ketsana (storm number 9 as Vietnamese called), but were beaten by armed men, and all of their property was robbed.
Having wrestled with the ocean waves for 3 days, drifted and dispersed in the ocean to return mainland, the fishermen have recounted the horrified hours at sea to VNN reporters, with regards to three times escaping from the death, more than 192 hours of choking because the death was suspended on the top of their heads...
The horror at middle of the distant sea
After being chased by terrible storm over two days and nights amid the distant sea, when they went to the standstill, on 28th September evening, the 17 fishing ships with over 200 fishermen of Ly Son island and Binh Chau commune (Binh Son district, Quang Ngai province) ran into Hoang Sa Island (English name: Paracel Island) to shelter from the storm.
Nguyen Van Bay - the old man who has just escaped from the death and come back home together with more than 10 other crew members of QNg-5012 fishing ship is still stunned because of the horrified hours which he witnessed and said that he has not ever experienced it before. He is an expert fisherman who has ever been wave-rode, wind-rode, haughty on many hurricanes at the middle of the distant sea for over thirty years.
(IMG:http://images.vietnamnet.vn/dataimages/200910/original/images1869196_Ngu dan 3.JPG)
The fishing ship of Mr. Truong Minh Quang - living in Binh Chau, Binh
Son, Quang Ngai- came back in tattered status cause of storming and
robbing.
The thing made him stunned is the way in which men treated with others. He himself witnessed ones that wearing chinese navy uniform beat ruthlessly and persecuted his co-worker on Paracel islands when his boat and more than 10 others put in the islands on September 28th to escape from the storm in an impasse.
“I received the information of storm (typhoon Ketsana) on September 27th while controlling my boat at 16.04N and 115.01E. Then captain Nguyen Van Bay and I drove it to find a place to shelter” he recalled.
The calamity-never-fear man related: “at that time, the storm had not come yet but wind was rising. Waves covered the cabin totally. Could not return, I and my partners bailed out the ship and tried to drive towards Paracel islands to shelter. It was coming soon. Unfortunately, the machine failed to work. Having no another way, I called ship QNg-90078-T5, that led by captain Truong Minh Quang, to come back and pulled it. Truong Minh Quang is the captain of QNg-90078-T5 and ship’s owner, too. He was not scared of danger, came back and pulled QNg-5012 ship, which the machine was broke down when escaping from the storm. Togerther with 14 other ships of Ly Son residents, they arrived to Paracel islands at 3 pm on the afternoon of September 28th. Immediately, bullets from naval ships berthed in the port were shot thickly towards them.
(IMG:http://images.vietnamnet.vn/dataimages/200910/original/images1869194_Ngu dan 1.JPG)
Pilot Nguyen Van Bay was checking the robbed boat after returned
land.
Captain Truong Minh Quang, who was also in distress with Mr. Bay, continued his narrative: “When being disturbed with storm behind and bullets in front; we decided to move the ships far away from the port and reported via telephone to the administration of Quang Ngai province for their intervening and helping.
Till 9 pm on the same day, wind squalled strongly, waves severely tided and covered all 17 ships with more than 200 people (including 14 ships from Ly Son islet and 3 ships from Binh Chau – Binh Son – reporter). Impossible to bear the squalls, we lost connection with mainland; no way out, we decided to hang white flags, concurrently started engines and rushed into Paracel islands, hoping to survive.
Luckily; wind blew too strongly; since bullets from arm-boats no longer kept on. We were so happy, embraced each other, cried and shouted: “We alived!”.
Escape from storm, encounter the robbers.
After two days sheltered in Paracel islands, were tattered by storm and driven away by strangers, but all of the fishermen still were unhurt. When the storm abated, sea became calm and strong wind no longer existed, all 17 ships hurried off and weighed anchor to go offshore.
When the ships got ready to go out, suddenly an armed-boat with number sign of 1312 blocked the way. Concurrently, a group of strangers wearing Chinese navy uniforms with firearms and large hammers, axes, crowbars.... jumped onto the fishing ships to inspect papers and search thoroughly.
(IMG:http://images.vietnamnet.vn/dataimages/200910/original/images1869197_NGU DAN.JPG)
Captain Truong Minh Quang and Le Tram told the story about
their ships were tattered by storm and robbed when sheltering.
Captain Truong Minh Quang related: “At that time I was all of the sudden, I only heard a crew member who jumped onto my ship from the gunboat asking for captain. I had stepped up onto the front; then they pointed their guns at me and forced me to raise my hands up”.
A beefy man came and choked me, then started to ransack my body and deprived my watch, gold necklace and over 800,000 VND in my pocket. Too panic, I told my crew to give them all our properties to avoid being beaten and keep our lives. Where there is live, there is hope…”
Another fisherman on Mr. Quang’s ship, Truong Van Tram, may be his beefy body is a reason, was beaten without any explanations with some slaps. He was choked and fell over the deck. Moreover, they pitilessly deprived a watch of this poor fisher’s hand.
“They were too crowded and armed with axes, hammers…, while I was too scared and hid behind the cockpit, a beefy man came and slapped on my face two times, my blood spilled all over my face, I fell over the deck and swooned…” Tram retold in fear.
“Did not stop, they used their hammers to demolish some casks of water and they didn’t forget to rob our oil barrels, long-ranged ICOM, fish-finder, and locating device. After that, they pitilessly used hammers to cut and robbed all of the diving ropes and seafood before leaving out to another boat. Luckily, they didn’t take the compass mounted in front of the cockpit, so we can find the direction to come back home.”
The same fate as Mr. Quang’s, the ship in distress with the failed engine of Mr. Nguyen Van Tau, drawn by Mr. Quang’s ship on the way to escape from the storm, suffered from the same tragic plight of robbing, demolishing and beating up.
Continued with Mr. Quang’s narration, his crew was so luckier than those of Ly Son’s ships. Because these ships had tried to conceal properties before the troops came into; they didn’t see any valuable things, so these soldier-bandits beat the fishermen brutally to force them to reveal where machines and properties were hidden.
Many poor members on Ly Son ships were beaten up. The terrible story when they escaped from the storm No.9 in Paracel Islands was related by Mr. Duong Van Tho and his son with the unfading fear remaining on their faces.
On September 30th morning, when they were preparing to set sail, suddenly a troops with guns in hands jumped on his ship. “At that time, I and my crew were all of the sudden because we thought that our ship was just like other countries’ ones, we came to evade the storm then went off, and would not be interrogated.
But dozens of AK47 pointed at us, everyone only knelt down, put our hands up. An officer accompanied with the troops so that no one was beaten, but everything was gathered quickly: ICOM talkie, water analyzer, four rolls of diving ropes, locating device… All the properties on ship were wholly robbed; there were only an empty ship and a compass left. After finished, this troops left for another ship…” Mr. Tho still remembered in detail.
Seeing those strangers were outside, Mr. Le Du, Nguyen Luu… had tried to hide properties agilely before the troops approached. Did not find anything, they rushed into and beat the fishermen brutally.
The troops jumped onto the board, pointed their knives at his face and asked for where the ICOM talkie was. Mr. Du said that he didn’t know with a shake of the head. Then the chain on his neck was taken out. A guy nearby rushed to make a snatch at the chain and put it in his pocket.
The other guys gestured to the men on the board to release anything in pocket. Knowing that they would beat; Mr. Du gave them his cell and some cash to avoid being beaten.
However, before leaving, this troop used hammers to break eight rolls of diving ropes up. Two guys turned round and asked about the engine, Mr. Du pointed at beside ship and said that because of setting sail together so that they had just an engine (and it had been taken).
More ruthlessly, they saw Le Hop (son of Mr. Du, fifteen years old) was the smallest one; two guys lifted him up, put him lie across the cabin’s window and began to torture.
“Two beefy guys started coming to blows, slapping, I felt stunned. Then their hobnailed boots poked me in the ribs in turn, I swooned without any consciousness. Then, they left…”, Le Hop related in fear and trembling.
Having seen the troops jump into the nearby ships, Mr Luu and his son immediately hid machines and mobiles into a rice barrel in the ship roar.
When the troops came into his ship and saw the mobile charger at a corner, all of them started to torture the fishermen to find the mobile. Both father and son were seriously beaten. The son, named Tam, 19 years old, after series of punches directed towards his face, was dripping with blood; he was also kicked into the side by nails shoes. Did not bear with this torture; the men revealed the hiding place.
The thrashing had still continued and became more and more seriously. Mr. Luu and his son and all of 12 men in the ship are the worst beaten men because they were accused of “telling lie” and “not deposing”.
Mr. Luu remembered: “After more than 30 minutes had been beaten on the ship; when 13 seamen were dripping with blood in their faces, swooned and fell down; the troops left the ship but they did not forget to demolish all things available and rob all furniture, except the compass in cabin because it is not worth any way”.
One by one, 17 ships, which belong to the fishermen, who are citizens of An Hai commune (Ly Son islet) and Binh Chau commune (Binh Son – Quang Ngai), were raided; the men were robbed and mercilessly beaten. Finishing their “work” in one ship, the troops jumped immediately onto the others.
The troops continued to beat, threatened force with black muzzles, knives, hammers, crowbars. They robbed all things that they could in the ships; demolished all things that they could see: machines, foods, fresh water tanks... all were chopped to holes and smashed to pieces.
In average calculation, each ship lost about 80 million VND, including machines for fishing such as ICOM, locating devices, diving ropes, oil... This calculation did not include the other losses which could not count by money.
Two days had been tattered by storm. After the storm was over, the fishermen still were robbed and beaten. 17 ships were more tattered. In the way to come back home, these ships had no connecting devices. They have just depended on small compasses to grope the way and were attacked again and drifted away by the tides which shaped after the storm.
Collecting information about the maltreated fishermen.
Talked on Oct. 13 about information regarding to more than 200 Vietnamese fishermen were beaten and robbed by the Chinese when they sheltered from the storm in Hoang Sa (Paracel islands); both Mr. Nguyen Viet Thang, president of Vietnam Fisheries Society (VINAFIS) and Mr. Tran Cao Muu, General Secretary of the Society said that they knew this information of the matter.
According to Mr. Tran Cao Muu, until evening of Oct. 13, the Society had not received any reports or official documents from Quang Ngai administration related to the matter. But the Society leaders basically knew the situation.
Although the Society have not received any report, according to Mr. Muu, if the information which newspaper released is true, this is serious matter and the Society leaders agreed that when they received a official report from Quang Ngai, the Society would send an official document to Embassy of China to Vietnam to protest the maltreated action.
Mr. Muu believed that action of anyone who hinder, do not receive and rescue the victim of storm in the sea is inhuman. These people obey the international rules of rescuing sea victims.
Especially, to maltreat, beat fishermen, including children; to rob, demolish furniture and fishing equipments of fishermen after allow them to shelter from storm is a evil act.
According to Mr. Truong Ngoc Nhi, vice president of Quang Ngai People Committee, the committee guided the province headquarter of border defense army to co-ordinate with Binh Son district and Ly Son isle to collect information from the fishermen, who were beaten and robbed when 21 ships came into Paracel islands to shelter from the storm number 9 (Vietnamese name of typhoon Ketsana).
VietNamNet
More than 7 days are passed but the fishermen who return from the hell in the distant sea, is still stunned because over 200 fishermen of 17 fishing ships were not only hit by storm called typhoon Ketsana (storm number 9 as Vietnamese called), but were beaten by armed men, and all of their property was robbed.
Having wrestled with the ocean waves for 3 days, drifted and dispersed in the ocean to return mainland, the fishermen have recounted the horrified hours at sea to VNN reporters, with regards to three times escaping from the death, more than 192 hours of choking because the death was suspended on the top of their heads...
The horror at middle of the distant sea
After being chased by terrible storm over two days and nights amid the distant sea, when they went to the standstill, on 28th September evening, the 17 fishing ships with over 200 fishermen of Ly Son island and Binh Chau commune (Binh Son district, Quang Ngai province) ran into Hoang Sa Island (English name: Paracel Island) to shelter from the storm.
Nguyen Van Bay - the old man who has just escaped from the death and come back home together with more than 10 other crew members of QNg-5012 fishing ship is still stunned because of the horrified hours which he witnessed and said that he has not ever experienced it before. He is an expert fisherman who has ever been wave-rode, wind-rode, haughty on many hurricanes at the middle of the distant sea for over thirty years.
(IMG:http://images.vietnamnet.vn/dataimages/200910/original/images1869196_Ngu dan 3.JPG)
The fishing ship of Mr. Truong Minh Quang - living in Binh Chau, Binh
Son, Quang Ngai- came back in tattered status cause of storming and
robbing.
The thing made him stunned is the way in which men treated with others. He himself witnessed ones that wearing chinese navy uniform beat ruthlessly and persecuted his co-worker on Paracel islands when his boat and more than 10 others put in the islands on September 28th to escape from the storm in an impasse.
“I received the information of storm (typhoon Ketsana) on September 27th while controlling my boat at 16.04N and 115.01E. Then captain Nguyen Van Bay and I drove it to find a place to shelter” he recalled.
The calamity-never-fear man related: “at that time, the storm had not come yet but wind was rising. Waves covered the cabin totally. Could not return, I and my partners bailed out the ship and tried to drive towards Paracel islands to shelter. It was coming soon. Unfortunately, the machine failed to work. Having no another way, I called ship QNg-90078-T5, that led by captain Truong Minh Quang, to come back and pulled it. Truong Minh Quang is the captain of QNg-90078-T5 and ship’s owner, too. He was not scared of danger, came back and pulled QNg-5012 ship, which the machine was broke down when escaping from the storm. Togerther with 14 other ships of Ly Son residents, they arrived to Paracel islands at 3 pm on the afternoon of September 28th. Immediately, bullets from naval ships berthed in the port were shot thickly towards them.
(IMG:http://images.vietnamnet.vn/dataimages/200910/original/images1869194_Ngu dan 1.JPG)
Pilot Nguyen Van Bay was checking the robbed boat after returned
land.
Captain Truong Minh Quang, who was also in distress with Mr. Bay, continued his narrative: “When being disturbed with storm behind and bullets in front; we decided to move the ships far away from the port and reported via telephone to the administration of Quang Ngai province for their intervening and helping.
Till 9 pm on the same day, wind squalled strongly, waves severely tided and covered all 17 ships with more than 200 people (including 14 ships from Ly Son islet and 3 ships from Binh Chau – Binh Son – reporter). Impossible to bear the squalls, we lost connection with mainland; no way out, we decided to hang white flags, concurrently started engines and rushed into Paracel islands, hoping to survive.
Luckily; wind blew too strongly; since bullets from arm-boats no longer kept on. We were so happy, embraced each other, cried and shouted: “We alived!”.
Escape from storm, encounter the robbers.
After two days sheltered in Paracel islands, were tattered by storm and driven away by strangers, but all of the fishermen still were unhurt. When the storm abated, sea became calm and strong wind no longer existed, all 17 ships hurried off and weighed anchor to go offshore.
When the ships got ready to go out, suddenly an armed-boat with number sign of 1312 blocked the way. Concurrently, a group of strangers wearing Chinese navy uniforms with firearms and large hammers, axes, crowbars.... jumped onto the fishing ships to inspect papers and search thoroughly.
(IMG:http://images.vietnamnet.vn/dataimages/200910/original/images1869197_NGU DAN.JPG)
Captain Truong Minh Quang and Le Tram told the story about
their ships were tattered by storm and robbed when sheltering.
Captain Truong Minh Quang related: “At that time I was all of the sudden, I only heard a crew member who jumped onto my ship from the gunboat asking for captain. I had stepped up onto the front; then they pointed their guns at me and forced me to raise my hands up”.
A beefy man came and choked me, then started to ransack my body and deprived my watch, gold necklace and over 800,000 VND in my pocket. Too panic, I told my crew to give them all our properties to avoid being beaten and keep our lives. Where there is live, there is hope…”
Another fisherman on Mr. Quang’s ship, Truong Van Tram, may be his beefy body is a reason, was beaten without any explanations with some slaps. He was choked and fell over the deck. Moreover, they pitilessly deprived a watch of this poor fisher’s hand.
“They were too crowded and armed with axes, hammers…, while I was too scared and hid behind the cockpit, a beefy man came and slapped on my face two times, my blood spilled all over my face, I fell over the deck and swooned…” Tram retold in fear.
“Did not stop, they used their hammers to demolish some casks of water and they didn’t forget to rob our oil barrels, long-ranged ICOM, fish-finder, and locating device. After that, they pitilessly used hammers to cut and robbed all of the diving ropes and seafood before leaving out to another boat. Luckily, they didn’t take the compass mounted in front of the cockpit, so we can find the direction to come back home.”
The same fate as Mr. Quang’s, the ship in distress with the failed engine of Mr. Nguyen Van Tau, drawn by Mr. Quang’s ship on the way to escape from the storm, suffered from the same tragic plight of robbing, demolishing and beating up.
Continued with Mr. Quang’s narration, his crew was so luckier than those of Ly Son’s ships. Because these ships had tried to conceal properties before the troops came into; they didn’t see any valuable things, so these soldier-bandits beat the fishermen brutally to force them to reveal where machines and properties were hidden.
Many poor members on Ly Son ships were beaten up. The terrible story when they escaped from the storm No.9 in Paracel Islands was related by Mr. Duong Van Tho and his son with the unfading fear remaining on their faces.
On September 30th morning, when they were preparing to set sail, suddenly a troops with guns in hands jumped on his ship. “At that time, I and my crew were all of the sudden because we thought that our ship was just like other countries’ ones, we came to evade the storm then went off, and would not be interrogated.
But dozens of AK47 pointed at us, everyone only knelt down, put our hands up. An officer accompanied with the troops so that no one was beaten, but everything was gathered quickly: ICOM talkie, water analyzer, four rolls of diving ropes, locating device… All the properties on ship were wholly robbed; there were only an empty ship and a compass left. After finished, this troops left for another ship…” Mr. Tho still remembered in detail.
Seeing those strangers were outside, Mr. Le Du, Nguyen Luu… had tried to hide properties agilely before the troops approached. Did not find anything, they rushed into and beat the fishermen brutally.
The troops jumped onto the board, pointed their knives at his face and asked for where the ICOM talkie was. Mr. Du said that he didn’t know with a shake of the head. Then the chain on his neck was taken out. A guy nearby rushed to make a snatch at the chain and put it in his pocket.
The other guys gestured to the men on the board to release anything in pocket. Knowing that they would beat; Mr. Du gave them his cell and some cash to avoid being beaten.
However, before leaving, this troop used hammers to break eight rolls of diving ropes up. Two guys turned round and asked about the engine, Mr. Du pointed at beside ship and said that because of setting sail together so that they had just an engine (and it had been taken).
More ruthlessly, they saw Le Hop (son of Mr. Du, fifteen years old) was the smallest one; two guys lifted him up, put him lie across the cabin’s window and began to torture.
“Two beefy guys started coming to blows, slapping, I felt stunned. Then their hobnailed boots poked me in the ribs in turn, I swooned without any consciousness. Then, they left…”, Le Hop related in fear and trembling.
Having seen the troops jump into the nearby ships, Mr Luu and his son immediately hid machines and mobiles into a rice barrel in the ship roar.
When the troops came into his ship and saw the mobile charger at a corner, all of them started to torture the fishermen to find the mobile. Both father and son were seriously beaten. The son, named Tam, 19 years old, after series of punches directed towards his face, was dripping with blood; he was also kicked into the side by nails shoes. Did not bear with this torture; the men revealed the hiding place.
The thrashing had still continued and became more and more seriously. Mr. Luu and his son and all of 12 men in the ship are the worst beaten men because they were accused of “telling lie” and “not deposing”.
Mr. Luu remembered: “After more than 30 minutes had been beaten on the ship; when 13 seamen were dripping with blood in their faces, swooned and fell down; the troops left the ship but they did not forget to demolish all things available and rob all furniture, except the compass in cabin because it is not worth any way”.
One by one, 17 ships, which belong to the fishermen, who are citizens of An Hai commune (Ly Son islet) and Binh Chau commune (Binh Son – Quang Ngai), were raided; the men were robbed and mercilessly beaten. Finishing their “work” in one ship, the troops jumped immediately onto the others.
The troops continued to beat, threatened force with black muzzles, knives, hammers, crowbars. They robbed all things that they could in the ships; demolished all things that they could see: machines, foods, fresh water tanks... all were chopped to holes and smashed to pieces.
In average calculation, each ship lost about 80 million VND, including machines for fishing such as ICOM, locating devices, diving ropes, oil... This calculation did not include the other losses which could not count by money.
Two days had been tattered by storm. After the storm was over, the fishermen still were robbed and beaten. 17 ships were more tattered. In the way to come back home, these ships had no connecting devices. They have just depended on small compasses to grope the way and were attacked again and drifted away by the tides which shaped after the storm.
Collecting information about the maltreated fishermen.
Talked on Oct. 13 about information regarding to more than 200 Vietnamese fishermen were beaten and robbed by the Chinese when they sheltered from the storm in Hoang Sa (Paracel islands); both Mr. Nguyen Viet Thang, president of Vietnam Fisheries Society (VINAFIS) and Mr. Tran Cao Muu, General Secretary of the Society said that they knew this information of the matter.
According to Mr. Tran Cao Muu, until evening of Oct. 13, the Society had not received any reports or official documents from Quang Ngai administration related to the matter. But the Society leaders basically knew the situation.
Although the Society have not received any report, according to Mr. Muu, if the information which newspaper released is true, this is serious matter and the Society leaders agreed that when they received a official report from Quang Ngai, the Society would send an official document to Embassy of China to Vietnam to protest the maltreated action.
Mr. Muu believed that action of anyone who hinder, do not receive and rescue the victim of storm in the sea is inhuman. These people obey the international rules of rescuing sea victims.
Especially, to maltreat, beat fishermen, including children; to rob, demolish furniture and fishing equipments of fishermen after allow them to shelter from storm is a evil act.
According to Mr. Truong Ngoc Nhi, vice president of Quang Ngai People Committee, the committee guided the province headquarter of border defense army to co-ordinate with Binh Son district and Ly Son isle to collect information from the fishermen, who were beaten and robbed when 21 ships came into Paracel islands to shelter from the storm number 9 (Vietnamese name of typhoon Ketsana).
VietNamNet