Vietnam Protests List of Chinese 'Sovereignty Violations'

Marianne Brown

December 05, 2012

HANOI — Border demarcation contention continues to plague the South China Sea.  China's claim for the entire sea is denied by its regional neighbors.  This week, Vietnam released a media statement listing recent concerns about territorial claims in the South China Sea.

Among the so-called “sovereignty violations” was a map of China’s Sansha City, published last week, which includes the Paracel and Spratly islands, two areas also claimed by Vietnam.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Luong Thanh Nghi says Vietnam asked China to respect the country’s sovereignty, terminate the “wrongful acts” and not allow similar acts to be repeated.

The statement included an accusation that, on November 30, Chinese ships cut the cables of Vietnam’s Binh Minh 2, a seismic survey vessel. The ship belongs to state-owned oil and gas giant, PetroVietnam. The company accused China of cutting the survey cables at least twice last year, triggering weeks of anti-China protests in Vietnam’s major cities.

Deputy head of exploration, Pham Viet Dunung says the ship was operating within Vietnam’s exclusive economic zone.

He says many Chinese fishing boats were causing problems for the company’s activities.

In response to the allegations, China’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei says the government is investigating the allegation and that the fishermen were engaging in normal fishing activities in that part of the sea.

Topping Vietnam’s list of so-called territorial violations are revised border security regulations released by China’s Hainan province last week, which will affect the country’s coastal regions, including the contested archipelagos, from January First.

The plan says Chinese police may stop and search foreign ships which enter waters claimed by China in the South China Sea.  Monday, the Philippines called it a “gross violation” of international law, because China claims almost all the sea.

Analysts say the regulations could have serious consequences for the critical international shipping route, but that it depends how they are put into action.  Every country has the right to stop illegal activities within its territorial waters, says defense analyst Carl Thayer.

"So on the face of it, so what, it’s like blustering. But then if you transpose that in the attempt to take action in waters not around Hainan and even the Paracels, then they are really escalating the situation," he said.

Analysts say if the regulations are executed in disputed areas which are occupied by other countries, like Vietnam or the Philippines, then China could be accused of piracy or even an act of war.

Despite the the possible serious international implications, Thayer says Hainan authorities are responsible for the new regulations, not Beijing.

"I don’t think the central government in China ordered these or orchestrated them but it’s clear there has been a neglect by the central government and local authorities act as cowboys at sea," he said.

In the statement released Tuesday, Vietnam Foreign Ministry spokesman Nghi says the ministry has met with representatives from the Chinese Embassy in Hanoi, to give them a note protesting the recent incidents.

The same day, state media reported Vietnam had set up a "maritime surveillance force" which will have the authority to arrest crews and impose fines on foreign vessels within Vietnam's declared exclusive 370-kilometer economic zone. Analysts say the move is well-timed, rather than being a deliberate response.

More to US-Cambodia relations than rights

By Vannarith Chheang

A meeting between US President Barack Obama and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen on November 19 took on added significance given the backdrop of the 21st Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit, which was held in the Cambodian capital, Phnom Penh in the same week.

Focusing on human rights, fundamental political freedoms, and electoral democracy in Cambodia, the conversation was generally described as "tense" by media. Obama touched a raw nerve by mentioning deteriorating rights situation, the fairness of upcoming 2013 general elections, and the issue of political prisoners. Deputy National Security Advisor Ben Rhodes, who accompanied Obama, said it will be difficult to deepen bilateral relations if the Cambodian government did not improve its human-rights record.

However, Obama's visit was not only about human rights; wider US interests in the region including strategic and economic relations must be taken into account. The presence of Obama in Cambodia was a significant event in the two countries' diplomatic relations. It was the first time a sitting US president visited this small and poor country, and it reaffirmed the long-term and sustainable US commitment to engagement in Asia.

US-Cambodia relations are shaped and framed by the US "pivot to Asia" strategy, which is dynamic and comprehensive. The strategy covers a wide range of activities including the strengthening of bilateral security alliances, forging of a broad-based military presence, engaging regional multilateral institutions, expanding trade and investment, advancing democracy and human rights, and deepening working relationships with emerging powers. It is an extension of the US smart power project, which includes, as suggested by the 2007 CSIS Commission on Smart Power, five pillars: alliances, partnerships, and institutions; global development; public diplomacy; economic integration; and technology and innovation.

Issues surrounding human rights are a key stumbling block in bilateral relations that need to be addressed objectively and collectively. Since 1992, the US has provided more than US$800 million to strengthen democracy and improve human-rights conditions in Cambodia. USAID programs have been diversified to include aspects such as education, public health, infectious disease, food security, climate change, private-sector competitiveness, and good governance. The US has contributed a lot to strengthening the role of local civil society organizations in addition to promoting democratic principles and protecting human rights.

Bilateral relations have steadily improved since the resumption of diplomatic relations in 1992. Cambodia was granted Most Favored Nation (MFN) status from the US in 1996 and in 1999 the two countries signed a Bilateral Textile Agreement (BTA) to link labor standards with trade. Under such favorable treatment, the US has become the biggest market for the garments and footwear (about 70%) made in Cambodia. The industry employs 350,000 people, mostly young women.

The US private sector is very much interested in expanding and deepening investment and trade with the region in general and Cambodia in particular. In 2011, US investment in Cambodia was more than $144 million, triple the amount invested in 2010. In remarks at the US-ASEAN Business Forum in Siem Reap in July 2012, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton stated "Our economic ties are already strong. ASEAN and the United States are large trading partners. Last year, US exports to ASEAN exceeded $76 billion, and that was up 42% since 2009. We have more than twice as much investment in ASEAN as we do in China. So there is a great deal of potential for continuing to grow our economic activity."

US-Cambodia defense cooperation has gained momentum since 2004 after many restrictions were eliminated, paving the way for direct military-to-military contact and engagement. Training and capacity building are the key areas of cooperation. Joint training and military exercises have been conducted regularly under the themes of disaster relief, counter-terrorism, demining activities, and peacekeeping operations.

During the visit of Cambodian Defense Minister General Tea Banh to Washington in 2009, Defense Secretary Robert Gates reaffirmed the commitment to strengthen the capacity of the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces (RCAF) in peacekeeping operations, maritime security, and counter-terrorism. In 2010, Cambodia, with support from the US, participated in the Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT) program and co-hosted the Angkor Sentinel with the participation of 1,000 peacekeeping personnel from more than 20 countries. The second CARAT program was conducted in October 2012, focusing on maritime security skills such as maritime interdiction, diving and salvage operations, maneuvering, and disaster response

The annual Bilateral Defense Dialogue (BDD) established in 2008 is a foundation for dialogue, cooperation, and confidence-building measures. It focuses on operational topics of mutual concern and coordination of security cooperation activities. The BDD illustrates the broadening and deepening of the military-to-military relationship and is an additional mechanism to further strengthen the bilateral relationship. In September 2009, Cambodia and the US created a Security Cooperation Coordination Group that meets regularly to discuss operational issues involving theater security cooperation.

In addition, there were several port visits by US naval forces to promote relations between militaries and strengthen mutual strategic trust between the two countries. The latest visit was on May 5, 2012 by sailors from the US 7th Fleet flagship USS Blue Ridge and Marines assigned to Fleet Anti-terrorism Security Team Pacific.

The recent bilateral talks on November 16 between US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta and Tea Banh in Siem Reap provided an opportunity for both countries to elaborate more on defense cooperation, especially in capacity building of the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces, cooperation on the recovery US soldiers missing in action from the Vietnam War-era, and the on new US strategy in the Asia-Pacific. Panetta reaffirmed the US goal of ensuring that the Asia-Pacific is a zone of peace, stability, and prosperity, and the commitment to work with ASEAN to increase its capacity to maintain peace and stability in the region.
US-Cambodia relations have been improving over the last decade and reflect a promising trend. Defense and economic cooperation have taken significant steps to build trust and mutual accommodation with common interests. However, as the recent talks between Obama and Prime Minister Hun Sen indicated, Cambodia needs to work harder to improve its record on human rights and democracy to advance relations with the US to a new level.

It is not a big challenge for the current Cambodian administration to improve the situation since it has established a relatively good foundation to promote and protect human rights and fundamental freedoms. It is a matter of continued political will, leadership, and participation from the people.

Continued US engagement with Cambodia on the issue of human rights is necessary but it needs to be more objective and scientific. Both countries should concentrate on convergent forces - economic and strategic interests - and continue to sincerely work together to overcome remaining challenges. It is in the interests of the two people and the global community of nations to raise the standard of the universal values of human rights and fundamental freedom. Cambodia and the US can continue working together on this issue.

In the rapidly changing regional security and economic environment that is increasingly complex and uncertain, there is a need to build and nurture trust and confidence. A good and healthy US-Cambodian relationship can contribute to peace, stability and development in the Asia Pacific. It would be a serious setback if the human rights issue overshadows other areas of cooperation and needs to be addressed in a holistic way.

Vannarith Chheang, a Pacific Forum CSIS young leader, is executive director of the Cambodian Institute for Cooperation and Peace. He can be reached at chheangcam@gmail.com

Victims’ Rights before the ECCC: A Mixed Record for Civil Parties

5 December 2012

One year after the opening of the trial of Nuon Chea, Kieu Samphan and Ieng Sary before the Extraordinary Chambers within the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC), to which almost 4000 victims of the Khmer Rouges are participating as Civil Parties, FIDH, with the support of its member organisations in Cambodia, ADHOC and LICADHO, is launching a report entitled "Victims’ Rights before the ECCC: A Mixed Record for Civil Parties". This report takes stock of the implementation of a regime of victims participation announced as one of the most progressive ones before international and hybrid tribunals.

"The ECCC experience raises essential questions concerning the mode of participation of victims", explains Patrick Baudouin, FIDH Honorary President and Civil Parties lawyer in Case 002 before the ECCC. "Is Civil Party participation the best way to ensure realistic, effective participation of victims in mass crimes trials? Were the ECCC given the practical means to explore all the possibilities offered by this system? In responding to these questions, this report intends to give its contribution to the effective participation of victims before other international and internationalized tribunals, such as the African Chambers within the Senegalese courts responsible for trying the international crimes committed under Hissène Habré, that have been recently created", he added.

This stocktaking exercise is undertaken while the ECCC are today facing the challenging issue of reparations for victims in the first trial of Case 002. "Given the ambiguities and gaps of the decisions on reparation in Case 001, that have caused disappointment among Civil Parties, the expectations are even higher in Case 002", says Marie Guiraud, lawyer, member of the FIDH Litigation Action Group (LAG), representing Civil Parties in Case 002 before the ECCC, and author of this report. "Nearly 4000 Civil Parties are participating in the Case 002 proceedings but only part of them are directly concerned by the first trial that is currently taking place, concerning in particular the forced population transfers. If the other trials, concerning other facts, are not taking place, contrary to what was initially planned, what will happen to the right of Civil Parties to reparation?" she added.

FIDH, ADHOC and LICADHO are also concerned by the fact that Civil Party Lead Co-Lawyers are now required to propose - before any decision on the guilt of the accused - "turnkey" collective and moral reparation projects to the Chambers, already financed and approved by the Cambodian government. "The effective implementation of reparation measures for victims is overly resting on the shoulders of intermediary organisations, that are already considerably contributing to the activities of outreach and victims support", declares Thun Saray, President of ADHOC.

Our organisations are as well concerned by the announcement of the creation by the government of Cambodia of a Victim’s Foundation that is supposed to be coordinating, as of 2014, the funding and implementation of the ECCC reparation programme developped by the ECCC Victims Support Section, but which mandate and fonctionning are still not clearly defined. Given the record of political interferences in Cases 003 and 004, clear guarantees of independance and transparency will have to be given by the government, in order for this Foundation to be supported by NGOs. To this date, these guarantees seem insufficient.

Indian navy ready to deploy to South China Sea as tensions climb

(Reuters) - India has declared itself ready to deploy naval vessels to the South China Sea to protect its oil-exploration interests there, a potential new escalation of tensions in a disputed area where fears of armed conflict have been growing steadily.

India's naval chief made the statement on Monday just as Vietnam's state oil and gas company, Petrovietnam, accused Chinese boats of sabotaging an exploration operation by cutting a seismic cable being towed behind a Vietnamese vessel.

Petrovietnam said the seismic vessel, Binh Minh 02, had been operating outside the Gulf of Tonkin when the cable was severed on Friday. It had earlier been surveying the Nam Con Son basin further south -- an area where Indian state-run explorer Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) has a stake in a Vietnamese gas field.
Indian Navy Chief Admiral D.K Joshi said that, while India was not a territorial claimant in the South China Sea, it was prepared to act, if necessary, to protect its maritime and economic interests in the region.
"When the requirement is there, for example, in situations where our country's interests are involved, for example ONGC ... we will be required to go there and we are prepared for that," Joshi told a news conference.

"Now, are we preparing for it? Are we having exercises of that nature? The short answer is yes," he said.
Petrovietnam posted on its website comments made by the deputy head of exploration, Pham Viet Dung, to a journalist from Vietnam's Petrotimes that the seismic cable was quickly repaired and the survey resumed the following day.

"The blatant violation of Vietnamese waters by Chinese fishing vessels not only violates the sovereignty ... of Vietnam but also interferes in the normal operations of Vietnamese fishermen and affects the maritime activities of Petrovietnam," Dung was quoted as saying.

Tensions have simmered in the South China Sea for many years but have escalated this year as an increasingly powerful China, which sees virtually the entire sea as its territory, begins to assert its long-standing offshore claims more vigorously.

Parts of the South China Sea are also claimed by the Philippines, Vietnam, Brunei, Malaysia and Taiwan. The region, Asia's biggest potential military troublespot, is believed to be rich in oil and gas -- and more than half the world's oil-tanker traffic passes through it.

Last week, Chinese state media said police in southern Hainan province would board and search ships which illegally entered what China considers its territory in the sea -- a move that immediately raised fears for the free passage of international shipping and the possibility of a naval clash.

COLLISION COURSE?
India is not the only non-claimant nation concerned about disruption to shipping or oil exploration in the South China Sea. The United States, a close ally to several of the Southeast Asian claimants, has also voiced concern at the prospect of China stopping international ships in contested waters.

India has sparred diplomatically with China in the past over its gas and oil exploration block off the coast of Vietnam.

Any display of naval assertiveness by India in the South China Sea would likely fuel concern that the navies of the two rapidly growing Asian giants could be on a collision course as they seek to protect trade routes and lock in the supply of coal, minerals and other raw material from foreign sources.

Admiral Joshi described the modernization of China's navy as "truly impressive" and a source of major concern for India.

"It is one of the most important international waterways and freedom of navigation there is an issue of utmost concern to India because a large portion of India's trade is through the South China Sea," said Brahma Chellaney, an analyst at the Centre for Policy Research, in New Delhi.

Chellaney, however, played down Joshi's comments, saying the Indian navy's focus would remain on the Indian Ocean, which the South Asian nation views as its strategic backyard.

Singapore, home to the world's second-busiest container port, joined some of its neighbors on Monday in expressing concern at the Chinese reports that Hainan police would board and search ships under rules to take effect from January 1.

"We urge all parties to the territorial disputes in the South China Sea to refrain from provocative behavior," the Singapore government said in a statement.

Asked about the reports of China's plan to board ships, Joshi said India had the right to self-defense.
Estimates for proven and undiscovered oil reserves in the South China Sea range as high as 213 billion barrels of oil, the U.S. Energy Information Administration said in a 2008 report.

That would surpass every country's proven oil reserves except Saudi Arabia and Venezuela, according to the BP Statistical Review.

On Monday, China's National Energy Administration said China aims to produce 15 billion cubic meters of natural gas a year from the South China Sea by 2015.

It said the South China Sea would "form the main part" of China's offshore gas exploration plans.

(Reporting by Arup Roychoudhury and Mayank Bhardwaj in NEW DELHI, Kevin Lim in SINGAPORE and John Ruwitch in SHANGHAI, and Ho Binh Minh in HANOI; Editing by Mark Bendeich and Paul Tait)

Vietnam: Chinese boats cut seismic cables

By CHRIS BRUMMITT, Associated Press

HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — Vietnam's state-owned oil and gas company accused Chinese fishing boats on Monday of sabotaging one of its seismic survey ships in the South China Sea, adding to already high tensions over Beijing's disputed territorial claims in the waters.

PetroVietnam said two Chinese fishing boats cut across cables being laid by the survey vessel Binh Minh 2 off the coast of central Vietnam on Friday.

"PetroVietnam vehemently protests the Chinese fishing boats' action against the Binh Minh 2," Pham Viet Dung, the deputy head of exploration at the company, said in a statement on the company's website. "We ask that China educate its citizens to respect Vietnamese waters."

Chinese and Vietnamese Foreign Ministry officials had no immediate comment.

China claims most of the South China Sea, bringing it into conflict with its smaller neighbors. Vietnam, the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia and Taiwan also claim part of the waters, which are believed to be rich in gas and oil reserves as well as fish stocks. China, which is strengthening its navy, has been increasingly assertive in pressing its claims as its economy as grown in recent years.

It is the second time that Chinese fishing vessels have reportedly damaged the Vietnamese survey ship's cables. An incident in June last year off Vietnam's central coast triggered rare street protests in Hanoi.
It wasn't immediately clear whether the reported incident took place in contested waters. PetroVietnam said it occurred 43 miles (69 kilometers) from the small island of Con Co.

China recently issued new passports featuring a map showing its territorial claims in the South China Sea, angering Vietnam and the Philippines, which have refused to stamp the passports.

Vietnam has also protested a recent announcement by the China National Offshore Oil Corp. opening nine oil and gas lots for international bidders in areas overlapping with existing Vietnamese exploration blocks. Vietnam says the lots lie entirely within its 200-nautical mile exclusive economic zone and continental shelf.

Vietnam vets sue military in Conn. over discharges blamed on post-traumatic stress disorder

By Associated PressDecember 4, 2012

NEW HAVEN, Conn. — The military has failed to correct the wrongful discharges of thousands of Vietnam veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, an advocacy group says in a federal lawsuit.

Vietnam Veterans of America on Monday joined a proposed class action lawsuit in Hartford against the Army, Navy and Air Force. The lawsuit, filed last year by a veteran, says the Vietnam veterans suffered PTSD before it was recognized and were discharged under other-than-honorable conditions that made them ineligible for disability compensation and other benefits.

The lawsuit says the military has refused to review or upgrade the discharge statuses of thousands of Vietnam War-era veterans with service-related PTSD.
“People did not understand PTSD during the Vietnam era,” said John Rowan, national president of Vietnam Veterans of America. “Now that we do, these service members must not be denied the recognition and benefits they long ago earned.”
The U.S. attorney’s office, which is representing the military in the lawsuit, said it’s reviewing the matter and will respond in court. A Department of Defense spokeswoman said the agency is committed to addressing concerns related to PTSD and has taken numerous steps, including conducting PTSD assessments of service members at military treatment facilities.

The initial lawsuit was filed by Vietnam veteran John Shepherd, of New Haven, who says he was diagnosed with PTSD in 2004 but has been repeatedly denied a discharge upgrade.

Shepherd and the VVA, which has about 65,000 members, are represented by Yale Law School students who work at a veterans legal services clinic. The students say since 2003 the Army has approved fewer than 2 percent of applications by Vietnam veterans claiming PTSD to upgrade discharges, compared to 46 percent for all discharge upgrade applications in recent years.

Some of the veterans denied had at least one medal or had a PTSD diagnosis from the Department of Veterans Affairs, according to the students, who analyzed the Army data.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., said he sympathizes with the veterans’ concerns and has been working with the Yale Law Clinic, the Department of Defense and state and federal veterans services agencies on a more equitable process to resolve them.

“The fact that Post-Traumatic Stress was not understood during the Vietnam War era should not preclude a reconsideration now of individual cases,” Blumenthal said in a statement.

The lawsuit estimates about 85,000 of the more than 250,000 Vietnam veterans discharged under other-than-honorable conditions have PTSD. The discharges were based on poor conduct such as unauthorized absence without leave, shirking, using drugs or lashing out at comrades or superior officers, conduct the lawsuit says was a symptom of underlying undiagnosed PTSD.

PTSD is a psychiatric disorder that can develop in a person who experiences or witnesses a traumatic event. Symptoms include flashbacks or nightmares of the traumatic event.

The veterans have experienced homelessness, prolonged unemployment and troubled relationships, the lawsuit says.

“Isolated and impoverished, they have struggled to cope not only with their war wounds but also with the shame of a bad discharge,” it says.

The Army awarded Shepherd with a Bronze Star after his unit came under intense fire and he entered an enemy bunker and threw a grenade that killed several enemy soldiers, according to the lawsuit.

Shepherd developed symptoms of PTSD after blowing up the enemy bunker and later witnessing the gruesome deaths of several comrades, according to his lawsuit. Shepherd began to act strangely and was found wandering around a base in a confused state. He eventually reached a breaking point and refused to go back out into the field, the lawsuit says.

He was charged with failure to obey an order and was discharged.

Shepherd’s application for a discharge upgrade was denied again in June. The Army said he failed to present convincing evidence that his misconduct 43 years ago was the result of PTSD or that his discharge was improper, but he’s appealing the decision.

Study reveals extent of Mekong dam food security threat

The planned construction of hydropowered dams on the Mekong River in South-East Asia could jeopardise livelihoods, water access and food security for 60 million people, across Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam, according to a study.

The study reports that dams will block fish migration routes and decimate fish supplies in the lower Mekong region.

As fish dwindle, communities will have to look for alternative sources of protein, such as livestock and poultry. Raising these will require more land and water, and be prohibitively expensive.

"People talk about food security in relation to dams but we need to put the numbers to what that really means," says Stuart Orr, freshwater manager at World Wildlife Fund (WWF) International and co-author of the study published in the October issue of Global Environmental Change.

Orr presented the study at the Third Mekong Forum on Water, Food and Energy, convened by the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research's (CGIAR) Challenge Program on Water and Food (CPWF), in Hanoi, Vietnam, this month (November 13-14).

Orr says that if all 88 planned dams were developed, Mekong communities would be faced with sourcing close to 40 per cent of lost fish protein from other sources.

And to replace fish protein with domestic livestock protein would require up to 63 per cent more pasture lands and up to 17 per cent more water, the study says.
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