The owner of the fishing boat from Da Nang which was capsized by a Chinese ship on 26 May, Mrs Huynh Thi Nhu Hoa, has affirmed that she will bring a case to court.  The lawsuit aims to ask China to compensate her for the damage to her boat, DNa 90152.  Her determination was confirmed in an interview with reporter James Borton from the USA’s Washington Times.  Mrs Hoa added that she has recently asked lawyer Do Phap from the municipal Lawyers’ Association to give her judicial assistance.  The Da Nang People’s Court will be responsible for handling the case.

A damaged section of the fishing boat

The former Chairman of the Hoang Sa Island District People’s Committee, Mr Dang Cong Ngu, remarked that if Mrs Hoa sues China, of course she will win due to the real and convincing evidence which proves China’s inhumane actions.  He added that the execution of any judgment will depend on the Chinese side’s attitude.  China is required to be responsible for serving legal judgments because it has already signed a convention on judicial assistance.  If China does not comply, it will prove its complicity in the aggressive attack.

Meanwhile, the authorised Chairman of the city’s Fishery Association, Mr Tran Van Linh, vowed to ask lawyer Do Phap to send legal documents to China’s relevant agencies, starting first with the Chinese Embassy in Viet Nam.  The intention will be to identify the owner of the Chinese ship 11209 which deliberately rammed the Vietnamese fishing boat.  Mr Linh added that if the owner of the Chinese ship is absent from the hearing in Da Nang, his association will support Mrs Hoa in completing the legal procedures to sue the Chinese side at the German-based International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea.  This is a tribunal where citizens of a country are allowed to sue a State for violations of international laws on the sea.