China has demanded swift action by three Southeast Asian countries after the Mekong River tragedy
China has demanded swift action by three Southeast Asian countries to prevent attacks on Chinese nationals on the Mekong River after 12 sailors died near the Thai-Myanmar border last week.
“The Chinese government values the life and safety of every Chinese citizen and demands a thorough investigation into what happened and that the murderers be brought to justice,” Vice Foreign Minister Song Tao told envoys from Thailand, Laos and Myanmar yesterday.
He told them their countries should “step up their investigation, get to the bottom of the matter as soon as possible, report their findings to China in a timely manner and severely punish the assailants.”
The safety of Chinese sailors on the river must be assured and China will assist in making that happen, Song said.
On October 5, 12 Chinese sailors were confirmed killed and one missing after two cargo ships, the Hua Ping and Yu Xing 8, were attacked and hijacked by an unknown group of armed men on the Mekong River.
The ships were in the “Golden Triangle,” where the borders of Myanmar,
Thailand and Laos meet, a region notorious for drug smuggling.
The Chinese government was shocked and deeply saddened by the incident and strongly condemned the atrocities committed by the criminals, Song said.
The three envoys expressed their deep condolences over the deaths and said they were committed to working with China to deal with the aftermath of the incident.
China is sending patrol ships to pick up Chinese sailors stranded in Thailand since the incident and it was hoped the three countries would provide assistance in that, Song said.
The vessels set out for Thailand along the Mekong River yesterday to escort the sailors and ships back home.
The patrol vessels, dispatched by the local public security bureau, left from Guanlei Port in southwest Yunnan Province’s Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture for Chiang Saen Port in Thailand, where 164 Chinese sailors as well as 28 cargo ships are currently stranded.
The two vessels which were attacked will remain in Thailand while the other 26 ships will return to China via the Mekong River under the protection of the Chinese patrol boats.
Twenty-nine family members of the sailors who died left from Mohan Port on the China-Laos border yesterday.
After their arrival, a memorial service was due to take place at the scene of the attack, said one of the family members.
The Mekong River, known in China as the Lancang River, rises on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and flows through China, Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam before spilling into the South China Sea. It plays a crucial economic role throughout the Greater Mekong subregion.
Source: Xinhua
