HANOI (Reuters) – A Vietnamese woman carrying banners denouncing China’s claim to most of the South China Sea died on Friday after setting herself on fire in front of a landmark in the country’s largest city, local government officials said.
The 67-year-old woman set herself ablaze at about 6 a.m. in front of the Independence Palace, once the headquarters of the U.S.-backed South Vietnamese government, in Ho Chi Minh City, Le Truong Hai Hieu, a senior city official, said by telephone.
“She carried banners saying ‘Against China in Vietnam’s sea’ and ‘I will bless Vietnam’s marine police’,” Hieu said.
The self-immolation took place a week after deadly riots in industrial parks led by demonstrators denouncing China’s deployment of a $1 billion deepwater rig in waters claimed by Vietnam 240 km (150 miles) off its coast. The foreign ministry said three Chinese nationals died in the unrest.
Read the full story at Reuters.
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