South China Sea CRISIS: China's fishing ban REJECTED as sovereignty row explodes

Vietnam is reaffirming sovereignty over parts of the South China Sea by rejecting the three-and-a-half-month fishing ban issued by China. Beijing’s ministry of agriculture announced the ban on Wednesday, saying it equally applies to foreign and Chinese vessels and warning its violation would be punished with detention and a fine. Foreign ministry spokeswoman Le Thi Thu Hang clearly dismissed the ban, saying on Saturday: “Vietnam opposes and resolutely rejects China’s unilateral fishing ban decision.”

The ban extends to the area between China’s Fujian and Guangdong provinces.

Within these miles of waters, there are the Paracel Islands, controlled by China but claimed by Taiwan and Vietnam, and parts of the Gulf of Tonkin and the Scarborough Shoal, claimed by the Philippines.

Vietnam said the fishing ban violates Hanoi’s sovereignty over Paracel Islands and the surrounding waters, and clashes with the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) – the legal framework for marine and maritime activities.

READ MORE: South China Sea: Indonesia sinks scores of boats as rift with Beijing deepens

Vietnam is one of the nations involved in the dispute over the South China Sea.

The country also asserts its sovereignty over Spratly Islands, an archipelago claimed and occupied by Malaysia, the Philippines, China and Taiwan.

Vietnam has recently raised tensions over the disputed waters with Indonesia too.

Last week, a coastguard boat bearing the Vietnamese flag rammed an Indonesian navy ship attempting to seize an illegal trawler.

This move triggered Jakarta’s reaction, which started sinking scores of boats, more than half from Vietnam, because they allegedly entered its waters to fish.

As many as 51 foreign boats were sunk by Indonesia authorities on Saturday alone as a warning to other nations, the Indonesian fisheries minister Susi Pudjiastuti said.

Claiming the use of violence is necessary to deter illegal fishing, the minister said: “There’s no other way.

“This is actually the most beautiful solution for our nation, but yes, it’s scary for other countries.

source: express.co.uk