Vietnamese fisherman shot dead in Cambodia

Vietnamese fisherman Nguyen Thanh Liem from the southern province of An Giang was shot dead on July 14 while fishing illegally in Cambodian waters, Lieutenant Colonel Hoang Van Nam, Commander of the Vinh Nguon Border Guard Station in An Giang, announced on Saturday.

A group of six armed people in camouflage uniforms approached Liem and three other Vietnamese fishermen in a small boat while they were fishing illegally in the waters off Cambodia’s Takeo Province, around 2.5 km from the Vietnam-Cambodia border, Nam said, without clarifying more about the Cambodian group.

During the clash, the Cambodians opened fire at the Vietnamese fishermen, killing Liem and injuring two others - Le Ngoc Nha and Phan Van Loi. While Nha was detained by the Cambodian forces, Loi and Le Hoang Dat managed to escape back to Vietnam, according to the lieutenant colonel.

“An Giang’s Border Guard and police are working with their Cambodian counterparts to investigate the incident,” the Vietnamese commander said.

Last year, The Cambodia Daily reported that a Cambodian man was killed after a group of fishermen from Cambodia’s Kampot Province clashed with Vietnamese fishermen while at sea in late July.

An Giang is located in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta, and shares a 100km border with Cambodia.

On July 8 this year, Thailand's naval forces also opened fire on three Vietnamese fishing boats from Ben Tre Province with 18 crew members on board, injuring two fishermen and leaving another missing. Two of the boats sank after colliding with Thai naval vessels. The missing fisherman was eventually found and safely returned to Vietnam.

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