Three countries condemn Philippine's murder of unarmed Taiwanese fisherman

[Zero_wing]

On in other Note

Taiwan reporter sacked over Philippine hoax

A reporter in Taiwan has been sacked for fabricating a story about a diner refusing to serve Filipinos amid a diplomatic row over the recent killing of a Taiwanese fisherman, his company said Wednesday.

The reporter, identified only by his family name Cheng, wrote on his Facebook page that he "witnessed" a diner owner refusing to sell boxed lunches to two men after discovering that they were Filipinos, according to Lih Pao newspaper.

When Cheng's superior asked to meet the owner to verify the story, the reporter sent an impostor and later admitted that he never saw the incident take place, the newspaper said.

"We apologise to the public. Even though we tried to verify the story, we regrettably could not avoid such a deliberate deceit happening," it said in a statement.

Anti-Manila sentiment has mounted in Taiwan after a 65-year-old fisherman was shot dead earlier this month by Philippine coastguards who claimed his vessel had intruded into their territorial waters.

Taiwan has rejected Manila's claims that the shooting took place in Philippine waters and that the killing was "unintended". President Ma Ying-jeou has described the incident as "cold-blooded murder".

A Taiwanese woman who similarly caused a stir on Facebook earlier this week with a story of a diner refusing to serve Filipinos has also admitted to making it up.

The woman, identified by her family name Tung, claimed that she bought food for a Filipino worker in a restaurant in Taipei on May 15 because the owner refused to serve the Filipino. She was caught out after giving conflicting details of the alleged incident when questioned by those who responded to her post.

"I know I made a very big mistake. I don't know how to face society now," she told reporters.

President Ma has called for calm and promised to protect the 87,000 Philippine nationals living and working on the island after a Filipino worker was attacked last week.

Taiwan has announced a series of economic sanctions against the Philippines, demanding Manila offer a formal government apology and compensation for the fisherman's family, and launch a joint investigation into the incident.

See

 

[Viet]

Wow, great achievement: Three countries condemn the Philippines. Hmm...what about the rest?

 

[Viet]

Militarily, Taiwan is worth 324 Philippines

The Philippines is a political asset for the United States to influence ASEAN. Aside from its political value, the Philippines has practically no military value.

There is no point in placing U.S. airplanes at Subic Bay. A single megaton Chinese EMP will render all of those American planes useless.

In contrast, Taiwan has an important air force base hidden inside a mountain on its eastern coast. Furthermore, Taiwan has its own fleet of 324 fourth-generation fighters. The Philippines has ZERO fourth-generation fighters and ZERO experience in operating, maintaining, and repairing the equipment. Basically, the Philippines lack the technical skills and infrastructure to operate and maintain a fourth-generation fighter.

Finally, many of you are missing the point. The list of countries condemning the Philippines will only grow. You only have to look at the growing list of nine U.S. congressmen supporting Taiwan against the Philippines to see the political trend.

You are a clown! a nuke attack will initiate a retaliation of nukes.

 

[ephone]

We definitely support that.

You are correct, Taiwan should blockade Luzon until compensation of $30 million is paid to the murdered family. All ships running the blockade will be fired upon.

 

[NiceGuy]

If Taiwan is not important, why did you send 2 CBGS in 96? Why keep selling them weapons? Why sign a deal support Taiwan self defence? Train Taiwanese pilots?

US sell weapon,train TWese pilots to fight against China,not.against Phil.

Even Phil.may kill.more TWese,US surely still.stay in Phil's side.

 

[Zero_wing]

We definitely support that.

Sure you will because your always support mass killings of people oh i forgot your term i meant to say reeducation

 

[USAHawk785]

Militarily, Taiwan is worth 324 Philippines

The Philippines is a political asset for the United States to influence ASEAN. Aside from its political value, the Philippines has practically no military value.

There is no point in placing U.S. airplanes at Subic Bay. A single megaton Chinese EMP will render all of those American planes useless.

In contrast, Taiwan has an important air force base hidden inside a mountain on its eastern coast. Furthermore, Taiwan has its own fleet of 324 fourth-generation fighters. The Philippines has ZERO fourth-generation fighters and ZERO experience in operating, maintaining, and repairing the equipment. Basically, the Philippines lack the technical skills and infrastructure to operate and maintain a fourth-generation fighter.

Finally, many of you are missing the point. The list of countries condemning the Philippines will only grow. You only have to look at the growing list of nine U.S. congressmen supporting Taiwan against the Philippines to see the political trend.

What a moronic statement. If China launched a nuke, then you're entire country will be vaporized, buddy. China would be erased from the entire map. Nuclear threats don't win wars, nuclear threats equates your country being glassed.

 

[Martian2]

Wow, great achievement: Three countries condemn the Philippines. Hmm...what about the rest?

Taiwan is outgunning the Philippines politically

The other countries are currently neutral. I'm certain Taiwan's foreign ministry is talking to them and trying to move them into the Taiwan column.

The current scorecard:

In favor of Taiwan: 3 countries (including a powerful UNSC Permanent member)

In favor of the Philippines: ZERO

It should be obvious to everyone that Taiwan is gaining more supporters each week and it is clearly winning.

----------

Related:

U.S. Congressmen in favor of Taiwan: Nine (including powerful chairmen of important committees)

U.S. Congressmen in favor of the Philippines: ZERO

This is a slam dunk in favor of Taiwan. With bipartisan support from 7 Republicans and 2 Democrats, the U.S. Congress is moving inexorably toward favoring Taiwan over the Philippines.

==========

On a separate issue, someone raised the question of whether the Taiwanese or the Philippine military is closer to the U.S.

I think this is an easy question to answer. Only Singapore and Taiwan have been granted the privilege of being trained at Luke Air Force base in Arizona. Obviously, only Taiwan can inter-operate with the U.S. military. The Philippines have no modern equipment and can't inter-operate with anyone.

Citation:

Taiwanese air power and its effect on the South China Sea

Taiwan has Asia's second-largest air force (after China)

The Taiwanese Air Force has 326 fourth-generation fighters, which is larger than the Japanese Air Force with 273 fourth-generation fighters.

If you ask me, "how did Taiwan end up with such a large air force?" My best guess is that the United States pressures Taiwan to keep buying military equipment. Taiwan has a large forex and relatively low national debt (42% of GDP). The United States expects purchases of roughly $10 billion every three years.

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Taiwanese pilots (including F-16) have trained at Luke Air Force base in Arizona for 55 years

Luke Air Force Base - Fact Sheet (Printable) : 56TH OPERATIONS GROUP

"Training foreign pilots is not new to Luke Air Force Base. The first foreign students to train in the "Valley of the Sun" were Chinese pilots during World War II. In February 1942, the first Chinese pilots were trained in the P-40 Warhawk, P-47 Thunderbolt and eventually the P-51 Mustang. These pilots had a major impact in the defense of China. Many of these pilots became members of a Taiwan squadron designated 21st Fighter Squadron "Blackjacks." The Blackjacks were one of the most successful squadrons during the war and were unmatched in their aerial victories against Japanese forces. Concurrently, the U.S. 21st Fighter Squadron was in the China theater attacking Japanese forces with the P-40 Warhawk and P-51 Mustang. It is in recognition of the exploits of both of these squadrons that the 21st Fighter Squadron "Gamblers" was activated at Luke 21st Fighter Squadron began training Taiwan pilots in February 1997, 55 years to the month that the first Chinese pilots began training here at Luke."

F-16 Air Forces - United States of America :: F-16.net

Two F-16A Block 20 aircraft on a training mission over the Arizonan desert, seen from the backseat of an F-16B Block 20. These aircraft are operated by the 21st FS 'Gamblers' at Luke AFB on behalf of the Republic of China and are used to train RoCAF pilots [ROCAF photo]

"Foreign Air Forces

Two F-16A block 20 aircraft on a training mission over the Arizonan desert, seen from the backseat of an F-16B Block 20. These aircraft are operated by the 21st FS 'Gamblers' at Luke AFB on behalf of the Republic of China and are used to train RoCAF pilots

Luke AFB is also host to a number of (semi-)permanent detachments from foreign airforces. These detachments provide training for F-16 pilots from their respective airforces, working in close cooperation with USAF instructors and profiting from the training facilities at Luke. More permanent detachments often get a dedicated USAF squadron designation. The first country to do so was Singapore. In the early nineties, the RSAF based a number of ex-Thunderbirds aircraft at Luke AFB for training purposes. Ever since then, the RSAF has maintained a permanent detachment at Luke, which uses the 425th FS "Black Widows" designation. Currenty, this detachment is equipped with the latest block 52 aircraft. The second country to receive pilot training was Taiwan. A number of Taiwanese F-16 block 20 aircraft were dispatched to the 21st FS "Gamblers" at Luke AFB for this purpose. Other international customers are trained at the Air National Guard facilities at Tucson. Singapore also maintains a detachment with the ACC's 27th FW at Cannon AFB, New Mexico."

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Taiwan owns Taiping Island and can affect Vietnamese coast or western Philippines

Taiwan owns the largest island (e.g. Taiping Island) and airfield in the South China Sea.

Taiwan's South China Sea Taiping Island runway

----------

A long time ago, Taiwan was the most industrialized of the South China Sea claimants and claimed Taiping Island first.

Taiwan is an old industrialized country. Taiwan's nominal per-capita GDP exceeded Portugal's in 2012. By 2014, according to the IMF, Taiwan's nominal per-capita GDP will exceed Greece.

Taiping Island | Wikipedia

"Taiping Island is the largest of the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea,[1] and the only one where fresh water is available.[citation needed] The island is elliptical in shape being 1.4 km in length and 0.4 km in width. It is part of the Tizard Bank (Zheng He Reefs; 鄭和群&#30977, one of seven reefs in the Spratly Islands near the centre of the South China Sea. The Taiping Island Airport is the most prominent artificial feature on the island.

The island is administered by the Republic of China (Taiwan), as part of Cijin, Kaohsiung. It is also claimed by the People's Republic of China, the Philippines and Vietnam. The distance from Kaohsiung to Taiping Island is about 1,600 km (990 mi). The nearby Zhongzhou Reef is also under the possession of the ROC."

 

[longyi]

Manila is "the gates of hell" - Dan Brown, author of “Da Vinci Code”

Philippine capital angered by "Da Vinci Code" author - Channel NewsAsia


...........


Diplomacy?


It is nearly two weeks since the diplomatic crisis with Taiwan began. Through that whole period, President Aquino has not publicly addressed the matter.

In any other nation, when a diplomatic crisis breaks out, the Chief Executive quickly addresses his people. This is done to calm fears, set perspective, perhaps even lay down a policy response to the matter.

Addressing the people is not just an option for a head of government. It is a grave responsibility.

It is not that the President completely fell out of sight. He briefly emerged shortly after the elections to sign into law the K to 12 bill, a contentious law left in the shelf until after the voting.

We know he is somewhere in the Palace, but, like an ostrich, chose to bury his head in the sand regarding the Taiwan question. I recall a Palace functionary mumbling something about the restraints of our One-China policy preventing Aquino from publicly addressing the matter.


Where's Noy Noy?

I fail, however, to find any sense in that excuse. The president of Taiwan, like the chief executive of the Hong Kong special autonomous region, is our partner in various international forums. No protocol is breached if we talk about the death of a fisherman after the cockpit of his ship was raked with machinegun fire.

The fact is, buried under many layers of diplomatic hypocrisy, we do have bilateral relations with Taiwan. The island powerhouse is one of our most important economic partners. We have over 80,000 Filipinos working there — whose safety and employment security are now in jeopardy.

The families of Filipino workers in Taiwan are worried sick over the safety of their loved ones. Our tourism sector is now counting the probable losses from Taiwan’s blacklisting of the Philippines. Businessmen are fidgety over the punitive measures imposed by Taipei. No one knows where the bottom of this quagmire is.

Presidential silence aggravates the anxieties.

The MECO chair, a small town politician named to a sensitive post, was tasked with conveying our hedged apologies to the Taiwanese people. His apology rejected, he was sent home. There is a thing to be said about the gravitas and the skills of people appointed to key diplomatic postings in this administration.

As was the problem in previous diplomatic crises, presidential silence is aggravated by the vacuous loquaciousness of those tasked to speak on his behalf.

Silent

Edwin Lacierda and Abigail Valte appear to have not yet realized that whatever they say in their daily press conferences will be taken as official policy positions. Day in and day out, in their version of the Punch and Judy Show, the two spokespersons somehow manage to utter the most incredible things.

Lacierda and Valte are fixed on a tit-for-tat mode. Addressing burning foreign policy controversies in that mode can only produce disasters.

Recall when China returned our banana exports last year. That produced great anxiety in communities dependent on our banana exports. I cannot recall now if it was Punch or Judy who declared that we will sell bananas to the Singaporeans as alternative to the mainland Chinese market. There is an arithmetic anomaly here. Even if we force-feed Singaporeans with our bananas all the days of the year, they cannot possibly consume the volume we sell to China.

Last week, when Taipei announced, as part of a package of punitive measures, no new migrant workers contracts will be accepted, the daring duo haughtily announced we will find alternative employment elsewhere for our workers. Well, we have been trying to do that for years and still could not find enough jobs for all Filipinos who wish to work abroad.

That cocky public posture is contradicted by the fact that we are working all the available backchannels to secure the highly skilled jobs Filipinos already hold in Taiwan. Instead of threatening Taiwan with a pullout of our workers, the diplomatic response was to call for restraint and then try to soothe ruffled feathers.

Instead of repeating the intrigue that Taipei’s reaction is politically motivated, we should focus on the official matter at hand. Good grief, the anger in the streets of Taiwan is real.

We now know that one of the major reasons our apology was rejected as insincere is that Valte, after announcing the apology on television punctuated it with her habitual smirk. That rubbed salt on the wound. It is the equivalent of President Aquino caught on camera smiling while inspecting the bus where Hong Kong tourists were just killed.

Valte smirk Ouch that hurts!

The question most asked these days: Who is in charge of managing the present crisis with Taiwan? Heaven forbid, could it be the silly duo speaking for the Palace?

Yes, who is in charge of managing this crisis, of evolving a coherent strategy to restore us to the robust, mutually beneficial relationship we had with Taiwan before this thing exploded in our face?

If there is no effective management and no coherent strategy in place, then Lacierda and Valte will just have to wing it. That is exactly what they have been doing since the crisis broke out.

Although this might not be evident, we should presume Lacierda and Valte know they do not make policy. We should also presume the two are well aware of the substantive differences between a public relations problem and a diplomatic problem. The tools for addressing either are very different.

It will be easier for us to presume regularity if someone tells us who the crisis manager for this is.

Who's the boss?

http://www.philstar.com/opinion/2013/05/23/945338/diplomacy

 

[ViXuyen]

Taking Formosa was like taking Iwo Jima; much easier than trying to take back a country as big as the Phillipines. Yet, when it comes to push and shove, the U.S committed their resources on taking back the Phillipines while unloading on Formosa. Why climb a higher mountain with limited gears? Ones can only explain that in the eyes of the American, the Phillipines holds much more strategic important values than Formosa. History has proven that the U.S is willing to spill blood for the Phillipines but never for Formosa/Taiwan.

Need an apology?

 

[shuttler]

Taking Formosa was like taking Iwo Jima; much easier than trying to take back a country as big as the Phillipines. Yet, when it comes to push and shove, the U.S committed their resources on taking back the Phillipines while unloading on Formosa. Why climb a higher mountain with limited gears? Ones can only explain that in the eyes of the American, the Phillipines holds much more strategic important values than Formosa. History has proven that the U.S is willing to spill blood for the Phillipines but never for Formosa/Taiwan.

Nice try for promoting our unification!

Need an apology?

Absolutely! First the pinoys, then the japanese, and vietnamese
do you want to rank in front? Go ahead!

 

[shuttler]

What a moronic statement. If China launched a nuke, then you're entire country will be vaporized, buddy. China would be erased from the entire map. Nuclear threats don't win wars, nuclear threats equates your country being glassed.

I dont think you will breath much longer after your first strike on us, Our friends should go elsewhere away from continental america. If you change and want to befriend then you are advised to fled to the sub-continent where you belong.

 

[jhungary]

it's actually an interesting point you bring up regarding the strategic importance of the Philippines vs Taiwan during WW2

Admirals King and Nimitz argued for an invasion for Taiwan (consisting of mainly Navy and Marines) while General MacArthur pushed for the invasion of the Philippines (consisting of mainly Army units); many would argue that the Philippines invasion was ultimately chosen more for political reasons, MacArthur's own ego and his personal promise to Filipino people rather than better overall strategical benefits and that it was a waste of time, resources and American lives to clear the entire Philippines of Japanese troops

Actually, what you said is totally false.

Philippine hold MORE value than Taiwan then (in 1944)

With Taiwan still part of Mainland China (ROC) the only reason to conquer Taiwan would be using their airstrip and strike Japan. Otherwise in case of touching Taiwan, you need to also invade Mainland China via Burma. Which would be as costly as invading Japan itself.

However, by then what Taiwan can offer to the allied force have already been done with the Marianas with airbase ALREADY conquered, why go bother losing man to get new asset while you can by-pass it and use the existing asset to bomb Japan from Saipan or Guam directly??

Also one need to look at the proximity of Taiwan to japan, if the US got suck into a fight in Taiwan, then it would delay their plan to incurs in Japanese Mainland. Which have the exact same effect for invading smaller island like Iwo Jima or Okinawa, Taiwan was a redundant Military objective to the allied force. Actually you can say if US decided to invade Taiwan, that would be a sole political decision that they JUST WANTED TO LIBERATE TAIWAN. With literally 0 military strategical or tactical value. Not the other way around

But the case with Philippine is different. With Philippine overlooking sea route to Dutch East Indies (today Indonesia), which still have a Strategic importance to the Japanese, with Joint Chief of staff and the President both say no to commit any invasion to DEI, it remain with the Japanese hand until the Japanese surrendered in 1945. With it's oil reserve and Strategic material, if those item are to broke thru and reach Japan, this alone will prolong the fight. Hence an liberation of Philippine is a good choice to get those supply in check for those 2 years.

Militaristically, it make more sense to Liberate Philippine than Taiwan, which the latter can be by-pass, but if you want to secure the sea route from Japan to Dutch East indies, you will need to conquer Philippine, which sit in the middle

 

[Krueger]

Philippines and Taiwan are long-standing friends of the US.

Philippines is a strategic ally and considered a major non NATO ally with MDT like Japan and S.Korea.

Taiwan is a partner because they buy a lot weapons and serves some unofficial purposes for the US.

 

[Viet]

Nice try for promoting our unification!

Taiwan should not enter the Beijing trap. It is just obvious.

Absolutely! First the pinoys, then the japanese, and vietnamese
do you want to rank in front? Go ahead!

I wonder why Chinese are so obsessed with such thing like sorry or sorrying?