The father and sister of deceased Vietnamese migrant worker Nguyen Quoc Phi yesterday rallied in front of the Presidential Office in Taipei, seeking justice for the worker who was shot and killed by police last month.
The latest rally, organized by the Migrant Empowerment Network in Taiwan (MENT) and other rights groups, follows the release of ambulance surveillance footage showing that police and paramedics delayed treating Nguyen after he was shot nine times.
“Whether my brother was at fault or not, police should not have shot him nine times,” said Nguyen’s 26-year-old sister, Nguyen Thi Thao, who held a photograph of her brother.
Photo: CNA
Nguyen broke down in tears and trembled as she spoke, asking why the first ambulance to arrive at the scene did not help her brother.
She also demanded an apology from the officer who killed him.
“Police fired nine shots at my son and killed him. I am heartbroken,” said Nguyen Quoc Dong, Nguyen Quoc Phi’s father. “I hope President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) and other officials punish the killer and give my family and son justice.”
Nguyen Thi Thao asked the public to help her family obtain a recording of her brother’s last words in the ambulance.
Hsinchu County police officer Chen Chung-wen (陳崇文) shot and killed Nguyen Quoc Phi on Aug. 31.
Police said Nguyen attacked the officer and a community watch officer when they tried to stop him from vandalizing and stealing a car.
Surveillance footage from the first ambulance on the scene shows that Nguyen Quoc Phi was still alive when it arrived.
The footage shows police and paramedics watching as the migrant worker died, without offering medical assistance.
The first ambulance left the scene with the injured community watch officer.
A second ambulance arrived later and the paramedics assisted Nguyen Quoc Phi.
He was pronounced dead at a hospital.
Taiwan International Workers’ Association researcher Chen Hsiu-lien (陳秀蓮) questioned why police did not subdue or cuff Nguyen Quoc Phi after the first ambulance arrived if he still posed a threat.
Nguyen’s father and sister, along with lawyers and labor rights activists submitted their petition to Presidential Office officials.
Presidential Office spokesman Sidney Lin (林鶴明) said that the government pays attention to and protects the rights of migrant workers, adding that the case is being investigated and that his office would respect the results of that investigation.
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