Sonsaid he collected these documents at the libraries of Yale and Harvarduniversities as well as the Library of Congress during a 10-month stay in theUnited States last year.
Hesaid the collection, which comprises maps, books and bibliography covering Vietnam,China and Japan in the 16th and 19th centuries, clearly show Vietnam’ssovereignty over the Hoang Sa (Paracels) and Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelagos.
“Ialso found documents related to conflicts and disputes on sovereignty ofislands in South China Sea (known as East Sea in Vietnam). Some documents andfiles clearly explain the disputes of the Hoang Sa and Truong Sa archipelagosamong various parties, and the illegal occupation of the Hoang Sa islands byforce by China on January 19, 1974,” Son said at the donation ceremony.
“Ialso collected old maps published during the times of the Ming and Qingdynasties between the 16th and early 20th century which clearly show thatChina’s borders did not include the Hoang Sa and Truong Sa islands,” he said.
Hesaid a 200-page geographical map detailing China’s territory under theQuianlong Emperor in 1760 does not include the two archipelagoes.
Eventhe 1885-printed Atlas von China that the Qing dynasty commissioned the GermanVerlag von Dietrich Reimer publishing house to produce, including 55 colouredadministrative and terrain maps of Beijing and 26 prefectures under the GuangxuEmperor (1875-1908), do not show any sovereignty over the Hoang Sa and TruongSa archipelagoes.
Hesaid the atlas, which has a 16-page explanation in German, does not refer toChina’s sovereignty over the archipelagoes.
Alsothe same day, the Hoang Sa District People’s Committee organised a meeting of12 people who had lived, worked and protected the Hoang Sa archipelago in the1959-1974 period.
Lastweek, an American-Vietnamese collector, Tran Thang, had donated to the districtthe Pattie De La Conchinchine, an 1827 map printed in the six-volume WorldAtlas (Atlas universel) by Belgium cartographer Phillippe Vandermaelen(1795-1869).
Themap is one of the most detailed maps indicating clearly Vietnam’s sovereigntyover the Hoang Sa islands.
LySon island, 30km offshore from Quang Ngai province, still preserves the Am LinhPagoda, a place of worship for seamen dispatched to the Hoang Sa islands sincethe 17th century during the reign of the Nguyen Dynasty.
Amuseum of the two archipelagoes displays over 200 ancient documents and 100objects proving that the Hoang Sa and Truong Sa archipelagoes belong to Vietnam.-VNA