Vietnamese killed in Cambodian revenge attacks
Angry crowds have attacked groups of ethnic
Vietnamese in the Cambodian capital, Phnom Penh,
killing at least four people, after rumours began
circulating that Vietnamese were responsible for
poisoning food and liquor.
In one attack on Friday three ethnic Vietnamese were
chased from a city restaurant amid allegations that they
had been trying to poison rice soup. All were killed
outside the headquarters of the Royalist Funcinpec
party.
The attacks began after
nearly 40 people died from
drinking adulterated rice wine
in villages around the capital.
The wine, which was
considered medicinal, was
later found to have been
laced with methanol.
Health officials have spoken
of a rising tide of hysteria,
with dozens of people arriving
at hospitals suspecting they
have been poisoned.
Rumours of revenge
Since demonstrators attacked a monument symbolizing
Cambodia's friendship with Vietnam on Sunday, rumours
are rife that ethnic Vietnamese in Cambodia are trying to
poison food and water to take revenge.
The BBC correspondent in
Phnom Penh, Caroline
Gluck, says their fears have
rekindled centuries-old
tensions between the two
communities, fuelled by
anti-Vietnamese rhetoric from
a number of opposition
politicians.
They accuse Second Prime
Minister Hun Sen of being a
puppet of the Vietnamese
government.
Friday's attacks have been strongly condemned by the
Cambodia Office of the United Nations High
Commissioner for Human Rights.
The UN commission said it was "particularly regrettable
that this food poisoning issue has begun to acquire
racial and political overtones".
Calls for justice
The Vietnamese embassy in
Phnom Penh has strongly
condemned the attacks,
calling on the Cambodian
authorities to bring those
responsible to justice.
It says it is concerned that
the current wave of attacks
against its own residents
might soon affect other
foreign nationals living in
Cambodia.
Opposition politician Sam
Rainsy has also condemned the attacks, calling them
heartless and inexcusable.
"To blame anyone or any group for this supposed
poisoning without having direct evidence could lead to
harm to innocent people," he said.
BBC World Service - September 04, 1998.
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