February 3, 2009
One year after Beijing officially incorporated Vietnam’s Spratly and Paracel Islands into a Chinese province, Vietnamese youths continue to protest Chinese encroachment and the Hanoi government’s feeble response. Despite a crackdown by security police against students and bloggers who have organized street demonstrations and posted articles on websites, many youths are finding novel ways to raise awareness.
Students have inserted flyers into books and newspapers at bookstores, libraries, commercial offices, and other high trafficked areas. This tactic has produced significant attention among the public, but is difficult for the security police to stop.
Another approach in the Saigon area is to distribute flyers on university campuses. Here are a few examples:
These are non-violent actions that can be carried out by anyone.
Despite the Communist Party’s efforts to conceal the truth, these simple but effective actions can help alert the Vietnamese people to the danger of losing land and sea territories.