Thailand asked to urgently verify fatal shooting of Vietnam fishermen

Vietnam demands Thailand promptly investigate and strictly punish individuals involved in Thai marine police’s recent fatal shooting against Vietnamese fishing boats, Foreign Ministry Spokesman Le Hai Binh said.

Vietnam also asks the Thai Government to make an apology and pay compensation for property and human losses of the Vietnamese fishermen and promise not to repeat the action, Binh said at the ministry’s regular press conference in Hanoi on October 8.

According to the diplomat, after learning about the incident, his ministry assigned the Vietnamese Embassy in Thailand to clarify the issue and sent a diplomatic note to the Hanoi-based Thai Embassy.

The Vietnamese Embassy also held a meeting with the Thai Foreign Ministry to express their opposition.

Later, a Thai delegation headed by Tanee Sangrat, deputy general director of the Department of East Asian Affairs under the Thai Foreign Ministry, had working sessions with Vietnam’s competent agencies.

At the meetings, the Thai side promised to open a probe into the case and will shortly report investigation outcomes to Vietnam .

The Thai Prime Minister also instructed an urgent investigation into the incident, the spokesperson noted.

Vietnam’s competent agencies are keeping a close watch on developments of the case and will take necessary measures to support families of the victims during the settlement, Binh said.

Vietnamese authorised agencies reported that on September 11, some fishing boats from the Mekong Delta province of Kien Giang operating illegally in Thailand’s sea were chased and attacked by Thai marine police. One Vietnamese fisherman was killed while two others sustained injuries.-VNA