VN-China hotline rules set
Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung recently promulgated regulations on the responsibility of Vietnamese agencies for operating a Viet Nam-China hotline dealing with unexpected fishery incidents arising at sea.
The Department of Fisheries Resources Surveillance under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development's Directorate of Fisheries will be the co-ordinator of the hotline's operation on the Vietnamese side.
Agencies responsible for collecting information include the Directorate of Fisheries, the Border Guard Force, the Maritime Police Force, the Navy, the system of coastal information stations, the Maritime Search and Rescue Centre, the National Committee for Search and Rescue and the People's Committees of coastal provinces and centrally-run cities.
They are responsible for informing the co-ordinator of any incidents at sea within one hour of learning about them. The department must inform relevant agencies in the field within 30 minutes of receiving the information. Incidents related to emergency shelter should be handled within one hour, while those related to fishery accidents should be dealt with within two hours, fishery disputes at sea within 20 hours and incidents of ship and/or fishermen detention within 40 hours.