The Vietnam Fisheries Society referred to this as a unilateral, unreasonable, and repeated ban by China, which seriously violated Vietnam's sovereignty, rights, and interests in the sea and islands; and violated international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), in contravention of the South China Sea (East Sea) Declaration of Conduct.
The VINAFIS issued an official dispatch to the Government Office, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Central Committee for Foreign Affairs, and the Party Central Committee's Commission for Publicity and Education opposing China's unilateral fishing ban in the East Sea beginning in 2023, which includes Vietnam's Hoang Sa (Paracel) archipelago.
According to the group, the long-term restriction on fishing in the East Sea would impede the normal operation of Vietnamese fishing vessels and fishermen in Vietnamese-controlled waters. As a result, this unjustified ban will increase the likelihood of conflicts between Vietnamese fishing boats and the Chinese coast guard, while also harming the fisheries sector and fishermen's lives.
The VINAFIS strongly criticized the Chinese side's erroneous fishing prohibition and urged the Chinese side to promptly lift the unjustified fishing ban in Vietnam's Hoang Sa waters.
The VINAFIS also suggested that the relevant authorities strongly oppose and take drastic measures to prevent China's above-mentioned unreasonable fishing ban, in order to protect marine resources and special aquatic resources, as well as to protect the safety of Vietnamese fishermen working in waters under national sovereignty, sovereign rights, and jurisdiction, and to maintain national security and national sovereignty over sea and islands.
The organization will direct and guide provinces, the Fisheries Association, and localities' Fisheries Societies to work closely with each other and relevant agencies to actively inform fishermen to ensure they comply with the law when fishing at sea, while also supporting fishermen to safely go out to sea for fishing activities, contributing to the country's firm protection of its sovereignty over sea and islands.
Deputy Spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Doan Khac Viet stated during a regular press conference on 20 April that "China's 'fishing ban' not only violates our sovereignty towards the Hoang Sa (Paracel) archipelago, but also Vietnam's sovereign rights and jurisdiction over its waters and its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) as delineated under the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea."
According to sources, Vietnam requests that China recognize its sovereignty over the Paracel Islands, as well as its sovereign rights and authority over Vietnamese waters, refrain from complicating the situation, and contribute to the maintenance of peace, stability, and order.
