Taiwan moving to end southern fishing line
By Adam Tyrsett Kuo in Taipei/The China Post | Asia News Network – 3 hours ago
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Taipei (The China Post/ANN) - The Taiwan government is moving toward abolishing Taiwan's southern boundary for fishery protection, an act which would extend the formal operational area of the Navy, the Coast Guard and local fishermen further south within Taiwan's exclusive economic zone (EEZ) toward the Philippines.
The boundary is currently set at the latitude of 20 degrees north.
In light of the recent fatal shooting of a local fisherman by Philippine coast guards, the Ministry of the Interior (MOI) and the Fisheries Agency (FA) are currently in the process of revising the government's fishery protection procedures to achieve an equal basis for negotiations with the Philippines over a possible fishery pact.
Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Anna Kao said that fishery talks are one of four demands made following the shooting incident, adding that the Foreign Ministry hopes to demarcate operation procedures between Philippine and Taiwanese fishermen.
Collecting evidence and investigating the case, however, are currently the higher priorities for the ministry, Kao said, adding that the commencement of fishery talks will depend on whether the case can be resolved.
Given that fishery protection operations conducted by the Coast Guard Administration and the Navy are not limited by the southern boundary, the boundary itself, which was announced by the Council of Agriculture, is effectively void, even though as a formal guideline it still exists.
After the government announced that protection operations will not be limited by the boundary, four Taiwanese fishing boats operating in the Bashi Channel crossed it yesterday morning to fish further south, while three approached waters close to the Philippines' Batanes Islands and Babuyan Islands.
Since Taiwan and the Philippines are at a critical juncture with regard to talks over a joint investigation into the shooting, the CGA's three vessels stuck close to the southern boundary yesterday morning, apparently to avoid giving rise to more tension.
Claims and contradictions
On May 9, a local fishing boat, the Kuang Ta Hsing No. 28, was fishing some 170 nautical miles off Taiwan's southern coast. The fishing boat was later fired upon by Philippine coast guards, leading to the death of 65-year-old fisherman Hung Shih-chen.
Philippine authorities maintain that members aboard the official vessel acted out of self-defense because the Taiwanese boat had "attempted to ram" them, adding that Hung's death was "unintentional".
The Taiwanese fishing boat, however, was not armed, while its hull also showed no signs ramming. The Ministry of Justice (MOJ) further pointed out that there were 45 bullet holes in the boat - the majority of which were concentrated in the cabin where the fishermen were hiding, contradicting the Philippine authorities' claim that the coast guards were trying to disable the boat's engine.
The MOJ added that according to the boat's voyage data recorder, the fishermen were within Taiwan's exclusive economic zone (EEZs).
EEZs extend 200 nautical miles off a nation's coast.
It is very unlikely that a 15-ton fiberglass boat would try to ram an armed 115-ton vessel made of metal, the ministry said.
