Foreign Ministry’s spokesman talks citizen protection

Foreign Ministry’s spokesman Le Hai Binh answered reporters’ queries about Vietnam’s citizen protection abroad during a regular press briefing in Hanoi on October 8.

Asked about the death of Vietnamese businesswoman Ha Thuy Linh who was poisoned in China, Binh said Linh’s family has contacted Chinese authorities concerned for support to conduct autopsy.

The ministry directed the Vietnamese Consulate General in Guangzhou to coordinate with local authorities to investigate the case and repatriate Linh’s body.

The ministry’s Consular Department sent a diplomatic note to the Chinese Embassy in Hanoi, asking for coordination to deal with the case.

Turning to the recent attack of three Vietnamese men in Osaka, Japan that left one dead and two others seriously injured, Binh said three suspects will be brought to trial in the foreseeable future.

The dead victim Nguyen Trong Tuan will be cremated in Japan and brought home with the support of the Vietnamese Consulate General in Osaka and local authorities.

The two others - Trinh Hoai Nam has been discharged from hospital and is recovering while Hoang Quoc Toan is being treated at Osaka national hospital.

Binh assured that the Vietnamese Consulate General in Osaka will partner with local authorities and families of the victims to guarantee their rights.

Regarding a case in Angola involving worker Le Van Que, 32, from Nghi Xuan, Ha Tinh province, who was shot dead by armed robbers in Viana, Luanda on October 4, Binh said the Vietnamese Embassy in Angola asked authorised agencies to investigate the case and ensure safety for Vietnamese community there. Together with Vietnamese nationals in Angola, the Embassy will help repatriate Que’s body by air.

About the assault and abuse of Vietnamese workers by their employer in Algeria, Binh said the Vietnamese Embassy asked Simco Song Da – the Vietnamese company that sent workers to Algeria, to work with the employer to ensure the legitimate rights and interests of Vietnamese workers are observed.

Over the past 24 hours, the ministry has kept in touch with the Vietnamese Embassy for the latest information which will be announced via the Consular Department and the Press and Information Department, he said.-VNA