Taiwan - China Threatens to Halt Filipino Hiring Over Fisherman’s Death

Taiwanese Fishermen shoot dead by Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) found poaching in Balintang Channel, Basco Batanes, the Philippines. Should the Philippines will ask apology for killing the poachers inside the Philippines waters during their operation? This Balintng Channel is not a contested area because this is the Philippine Water within or in the middle of the Philippines Islands and not in any boundaries. China and Taiwan are used to poached and fish inside the Philippines  because the Philippines is a weak country who do not have capability to guard its waters. China and Taiwan were used to abused the Weak Philippines and now demanding for apology for the death of the Taiwanese poachers inside the Philippines Waters. If you are the owner of the house, and you found the thieves inside stealing your assets and attempted to kill you so you fight back and killed the thieves, are you going to ask apology? . Map from Google

Taiwan President Ma Ying-Jeou threatened to recall his representative to the Philippines and freeze labor applications if its neighbor fails to respond within 72 hours to requests for an apology and an investigation into the shooting of a fisherman last week.

Ma issued "four solemn requests" after a Philippines patrol boat shot the fisherman dead on May 9, including compensation, commencement of talks over fishing rights and punishment of the perpetrators, the presidential office said in a statement on its Website last night.

Taiwan fishing vessel Kuang Ta Hsing No. 28 was hit by at least 32 bullets, killing a 65-year-old crew member, 164 nautical miles (304 km) southeast of Taiwan's southern tip in waters north of the Philippines. The Philippine Coast Guard will investigate the incident, its commander, Rear Admiral Rodolfo Isorena, said May 10.

Failure to respond within the time line, which commenced May 12, will result in Taiwan protesting by halting applications by Filipino workers, recalling Taiwan's representative to the Philippines and sending the Philippines' representative back to deal with the case, according to the statement.

To contact the reporter on this story: Tim Culpan in Taipei at tculpan1@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Michael Tighe at mtighe4@bloomberg.net; Bruce Grant at bruceg@bloomberg.net; Dick Schumacher at dschumacher@bloomberg.net

Bloomberg

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Taiwan Republic of China Fishermen rams BFAR Boat in Philippine Water causing Shootout

Philippine Officials said the BFAR MCS 3001 vessel first spotted 4 Taiwanese vessels 164 nautical miles off the southernmost tip of Balintang Channel in Batanes. One of the trawlers tried evasive maneuvers and was about to ram the BFAR boat, causing them to fire at the foreign vessel. 

Shooting at sea: Coast Guard kills Taiwanese fisherman

The Philippine Coast Guard confirmed Friday that a Taiwanese fisherman was killed after the PCG shot at a fishing trawler that tried to ram their boat near Batanes.

The PCG identified the fatality as Hung Shih-Cheng, 65, one of 4 crew members of the Taiwanese fishing vessel "Guang Ta Hsin 28."

Officials said the BFAR MCS 3001 vessel first spotted 4 Taiwanese vessels 164 nautical miles off the southernmost tip of Balintang Channel in Batanes. One of the trawlers tried evasive maneuvers and was about to ram the BFAR boat, causing them to fire at the foreign vessel.

Three crew members on board the Guang Ta Hsin 28 were unharmed.

"They fired at the machinery to disable it... if somebody died, they deserve our sympathy but not an apology," PCG spokesman Commander Armand Balilo told reporters.

PCG Commandant Admiral Rodolfo Isorena has ordered the relief of 11 PCG personnel onboard the vessel during the shooting incident.

Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Director Asis Perez said 2 BFAR personnel on board the vessel were also sacked.

Perez said the Taiwanese vessels were already in Philippine territorial waters when they were spotted by the Coast Guard.

Isorena said the PCG fired warning shots at the much larger fishing trawler when it tried to ram their vessel. The Coast Guard then shot at the trawler's engine, causing it to stop.

He said the PCG withdrew its vessel after another ship arrived in the area.

Taiwan's foreign ministry earlier said that a Taiwanese fishing vessel carrying three Taiwanese and one Indonesian crewman was fired upon early Thursday by a "Philippine government boat".

The incident, some 164 nautical miles off the southernmost tip of Taiwan, left one of the Taiwan crewmen dead.

The ministry did not specify what type of government boat allegedly fired upon the vessel.

The Philippines and Taiwan, along with Brunei, China and Malaysia, have conflicting claims to parts of the South China Sea.

China and Taiwan have been ruled separately since the end of a civil war in 1949, although Beijing claims the island. The Philippines has no diplomatic ties with Taiwan but maintains economic and cultural links.

With a report from ABS-CBN News, Noel Alamar, radio dzMM; and Agence France-Presse

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