Vietnam: Chinese worker killed in Taiwan mill protest amid anti-China tensions

One Chinese worker is dead and at least 90 other people injured after protesters attacked a steel mill in Vietnam, amid anti-China tensions over the South China Sea dispute.

The incident took place at a Taiwanese-owned mill in Ha Tinh province.

It came a day after protesters burnt several foreign-owned factories at an industrial park.

The demonstrations have been sparked by China’s movement of a drilling rig into waters also claimed by Vietnam.

Several anti-China protests have since taken place in Vietnam. Nationalist sentiment is currently running very high over the issue, correspondents say.

Protesters appear to have targeted businesses with Chinese characters in their signs, even if they are from other countries such as Taiwan.

The Chinese embassy in Vietnam on Thursday urged Chinese nationals to take precautions, in the second such statement in as many days.

“We once again remind all Chinese in Vietnam to take safety precautions, increase self-protection, and avoid leaving home unnecessarily,” said the statement posted on the embassy’s website.

It said that “Chinese businesses and workers have been the targets of violence” in at least seven cities or provinces across Vietnam. The embassy said it had asked Vietnamese authorities to ensure the safety of Chinese citizens.

On Tuesday, at least 15 foreign-owned factories were set on fire at industrial parks in Binh Duong province, and hundreds more attacked. No casualties were reported.

Some Taiwanese have begun leaving the country.

The latest incident happened overnight at a huge steel plant owned by Formosa Plastics Group.

Taiwan’s envoy in Vietnam said one Chinese worker was killed and 90 other people injured.

A local police official also confirmed this account.

“One Chinese worker is dead. We are trying to identify the body,” he told AFP news agency.

In a statement quoted by Reuters news agency, the company said its Vietnamese and Taiwanese workers were not attacked.

Taiwan’s envoy told AFP news agency that rioters forced Chinese workers into a corner of the factory. “The rioters have gone but we are all still concerned they might come back,” he said.

Doctors at Ha Tinh General Hospital told agencies several Chinese patients were being treated for injuries.

On Wednesday, Vietnamese authorities said at least 200 people had been arrested over the violence at the industrial park in Binh Duong.

China’s tourism body has urged its nationals to “carefully consider” any travel to Vietnam.

China’s Haiyang Shiyou 981 oil rig was brought into waters west of the disputed Paracel Islands earlier this month, leading to collisions between Vietnamese and Chinese ships as Vietnam sought to block the move.

China claims a U-shaped swathe of the South China Sea, including several areas that its South East Asian neighbors say belong to them.

In recent years it has started to enforce these claims more assertively, leading to severely strained ties with the Philippines and Vietnam in particular.

The Philippines is currently taking China to a UN court to try to resolve the issue.