Factories burnt in Vietnam anti-China protest

Protesters reportedly targeted companies with Chinese characters in their logos or signs
| credits: AFP

Several factories have been set on fire amid anti-China protests at an industrial park in southern Vietnam, amid tensions over the South China Sea.

The park’s management said three factories were set on fire on Tuesday, but other reports put the figure as high as 15.

No casualties have been reported but officials said many arrests were made.

The protests came after China moved a drilling rig into waters claimed by Vietnam earlier this month.

In a daily press briefing, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman said Vietnam was a “provocateur” and that Beijing had expressed concern to Hanoi.

Amid reports that Taiwanese factories in the park had sustained damage, Taiwan strongly condemned the protest and summoned the Vietnamese envoy to Taipei to express serious concern, according to state media.

The management of the Vietnam Singapore Industrial Park said that protesters gathered on Monday in Thuan An town, in the southern Binh Duong province.

On Tuesday they moved on to VSIP’s two industrial parks nearby and targeted factories owned or managed by the Chinese and Chinese expatriates.

A spokesman for VSIP told the BBC the three factories were set on fire on Tuesday evening after workers had gone home.

Not all of the tenants of the three factories were Chinese companies, she said. Some Taiwanese companies had been affected.

Other reports suggested the violence was more widespread, with more factories targeted.

A local official estimated that around 19,000 workers took part in the protest and that at least 15 factories were set on fire, according to local media. Some are reportedly owned by Taiwanese and South Korean companies.

One photo carried by Vietnamese media showed a factory had draped a South Korean flag at its entrance in a bid to stave off attacks.

The BBC also spoke to an employee of a Singaporean company in the industrial park who saw four burnt buildings on Wednesday morning.

Another eight were partially damaged, and had shattered windows and smashed front gates. These included buildings belonging to a Taiwan-founded shoe company.

“The protesters appeared to have targeted companies that had Chinese characters in their logos or signs,” said the employee, who declined to be named.