Bayer Vietnam CEO Fined Over Disputed South China Sea Map

(Bloomberg) -- Bayer Vietnam Chief Executive Officer Lynette Moey Yu Lin faces a fine of as much as 70 million dong ($3,007) for including a disputed map of the South China Sea in a document about the novel coronavirus outbreak, according to a post on the Ho Chi Minh City government’s website.

The map reflects China’s so-called “nine-dash line” in the South China Sea, according to the post.

China’s claims of sovereignty over about 80% of the sea is a source of territorial tensions between the two Communist countries. Lin violated Vietnam’s regulation banning the spread of “illegal” information and images about Vietnam’s sovereignty through a personal email, the government said.

Bayer Vietnam apologized for the incident in a statement on its website. The sea reference came from an internal document, the company said. The company immediately stopped disseminating the document, it said.

DreamWorks Animation‘s “Abominable” last year drew calls for boycotts and censorship in Southeast Asia because the film depicted the disputed map.

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