Vietnam anti-China activists mark island battle

Activists in Hanoi chanted anti-China slogans and laid flowers on Thursday at a protest marking the anniversary of a battle over the contested Spratly Islands in which 64 Vietnamese soldiers died.

Vietnam and China have been locked in long-standing territorial disputes over the Spratly and Paracel Islands, which both countries claim, and often trade diplomatic barbs over oil exploration and fishing rights in the contested waters.

In 1988 China launched an attack on Gac Ma Island – one of the larger Spratly Islands which was formerly under Vietnamese military control – killing dozens of Vietnamese soldiers in the last violent conflict between the two nations.

On Thursday some 20 activists laid floral wreaths covered with black ribbons which read “the people will never forget” at a statue of Ly Thai To – the founder of Hanoi and a nationalist figurehead – in the centre of the capital.

The protest was the first display of public discontent in Hanoi this year against Beijing’s perceived aggression over territory, following half a dozen anti-China demonstrations last year which were broken up by authorities.

Watched by dozens of plain-clothed security officers, the activists played patriotic music and chanted “Hoang Sa (Paracels), Truong Sa (Spratlys), Vietnam! Down with Chinese invasion! Down with Beijing’s expansion schemes!”