DAMAGE CONTROL:：The government aims to use bilateral pacts to find a legal basis to seek indemnity for damages to Taiwanese citizens or property in the Vietnam riots
By Shih Hsiu-chuan and Chris Wang / Staff reporters, with CNA
Fri, May 16, 2014 - Page 1
Taiwan is looking to cooperate with other countries affected by the recent anti-China protests in Vietnam to solicit compensation for the damage caused to foreign factories during the unrest sparked by Hanoi’s territorial disputes with Beijing in the South China Sea, Minister of Foreign Affairs David Lin (林永樂) said yesterday.
Lin told a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee that the ministry is studying two agreements signed between Taiwan and Vietnam on judicial assistance and investment protection to find a legal basis for compensation claims.
Beijing’s installation of an oil rig close to the Paracel Islands (Xisha Islands, 西沙群島) in the South China Sea catalyzed longstanding anti-China sentiment into violent protests in Vietnam’s southeastern provinces of Binh Duong and Dong Nai. The Paracels are claimed by Taiwan, China and Vietnam.
The protest began peacefully at the weekend, but on Tuesday devolved into a rampage against foreign businesses, with Taiwanese factories and offices among the hardest hit, presumably because they bore Chinese-language signs and were mistaken as being China-owned.
Some factories in Vietnam owned by Singaporean, South Korean and Japanese firms were also damaged by protesters, Lin said, adding that the ministry has spoken with the governments of the three countries to inquire about their willingness to file a united claim seeking compensation for the damage.
Lin said he has made it clear to Vietnam Economic and Cultural Office in Taipei Director Bui Trong Van in recent talks that Taiwan will lodge a compensation claim with the Vietnamese government.
Separately yesterday, Vice Minister of Economic Affairs Cho Shih-chao (卓士昭) said that the Ministry of Economic Affairs will help Taiwanese businesses hurt by the riots to seek compensation.
A 1993 bilateral protection agreement stipulates that Hanoi must compensate Taiwanese firms in Vietnam if they incur losses due to war, armed conflicts, national states of emergency, riots, rebellion or disturbances in the country, Cho said.
He said that the countries enjoy strong economic ties, with Vietnam being the top single target in Southeast Asia for Taiwanese investors, who have poured US$27.3 billion into the country over the years, while bilateral trade has increased to US$11.5 billion per year.
However, due to the riots, the Ministry of Economic Affairs will advise companies seeking to set up operations in Vietnam to assess the risks first, he said.
Also yesterday, the Executive Yuan announced that Premier Jiang Yi-huah (江宜樺) has set up a task force led by Vice Premier Mao Chi-kuo (毛治國) that is to draw up a government strategy to ensure the safety of Taiwanese businesspeople in Vietnam and guarantee that their right to be compensated for losses incurred there is protected.
The announcement followed a call issued by the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) demanding that the government immediately take all measures necessary to protect the interests of Taiwanese businesses affected by the rioting, including seeking indemnities and providing interest-free loans.
Voicing concerns about the safety of Taiwanese and their property in Vietnam amid the anti-China sentiment, DPP Chairman Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌), DPP caucus whip Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘) and DPP Policy Research Committee executive director Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) in a four-point statement demanded that President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) administration take immediate action.
“Taiwanese businesses have unfortunately suffered more losses than their Chinese counterparts, despite the protests targeting China-owned businesses. We have received a lot of requests from Taiwanese businesspeople in the region demanding a strong response from the government,” Su said.
On citizens’ personal safety, the party demanded that the government dispatch charter flights to bring home businesspeople who want to leave Vietnam.
The government should also engage in negotiations with Hanoi about indemnifying Taiwanese companies over property losses, Su said, adding that the compensation effort should be managed separately from any such claim made by Beijing.
The party advised the government to urge local banks against tightening their mortgage rules and to provide riot-affected businesses with interest-free loans through the Overseas Credit Guarantee Fund (海外信用保證基金) to help them bear the financial costs of the protests.
The budget for these measures could be allocated under the Executive Yuan’s National Development Fund, the party said, adding that such action was necessary because many members of the Taiwanese business association in Binh Duong — who were among the earliest investors in the country — had seen their investment “evaporate overnight” after the violent rampage.
Later yesterday, the Vietnamese government vowed to protect Taiwanese and their assets in the country.
Hanoi will do its utmost to ensure the safety of Taiwanese and other foreign businesspeople in Binh Duong and protect their assets and rights, Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Le Hai Binh said at a regular briefing.
Le said that the authorities had moved swiftly to crack down on the protests and are determined to take action against the rioters.