Foreign Ministry spokesperson Le Thi Thu Hang

“We are deeply saddened and offer ourdeepest sympathy to the families of the victims over the huge loss," Hang said.

She informed that immediately after thecase came to light on October 23, the Foreign Ministry had instructed the Consular Departmentand the Vietnam Embassy in the UK to coordinate with relevant agencies andlocalities of Vietnam and the UK, provide information related to the case fromVietnam to assist with the identification of victims, open hotlines to receiveinformation and get citizen protection measures ready in the case there areVietnamese among the victims.

The embassy had also transferred the results ofUK police’s identification process to Vietnamese agencies for cross-check.

At present, the Ministryof Public Security of Vietnam and UK police are coordinating in identifyingvictims suspected to be Vietnamese citizens in order to early announceinformation on victims’ identities.

“Vietnam strongly condemnsh uman trafficking activities, which is a serious crime that needs to be strictlypunished,” the spokesperson said, calling on countries in the region and theworld to intensify cooperation to prevent and combat human trafficking, thuspreventing the recurrence of similar tragedies.

The spokesperson also expressed thanks andappreciation to the Government, agencies and localities of the UK for theirinvestigation, information provision and close coordination with Vietnameseagencies in the case.

“We hope the UK side would early completethe investigation and strictly punish those who are responsible for thetragedy,” she said.

Vietnamese Embassy in UK releases statement on Essex lorry deaths

The Vietnamese Embassy in the UK released a statement on late November 1 expressing deep sadness at the initial findings by the Essex police that the victims who lost their lives in the refrigerated lorry on October 23 in Essex, UK, may be Vietnamese nationals.

The statement said specific identities of the victims still need to be identified and confirmed by the relevant authorities of Vietnam and UK.

“We would like to convey our heartfelt condolences to the families of the victims,” it said, adding that the Embassy of Vietnam in London will closely coordinate with the relevant authorities of Vietnam and UK to support the families of the Vietnamese victims, if any, to bring their loved ones home.

“We strongly condemn the inhuman activities of the traffickers of illegal immigrants that have caused such a tragedy for the victims and their families. Vietnam will work closely with UK to bring the criminals to justice and find effective measures to prevent similar tragedy from happening again in the future,” the statement said.

Any request for consular protection, please contact the Embassy of Vietnam in London at hot line of 44 7713 181 501 or the Consular Department in Vietnam at the hotline of 84 981 84 84 84./.VNA