A Taiwanese fishing vessel, the Chung Yi No. 318, has been held by Somali rebel militiamen since Aug. 13 for allegedly fishing in Somali waters, the Kaohsiung Fishermen's Association said yesterday.
A spokesman for the association said that the rebels are demanding US$90,000 in ransom for the release of the deep-sea tuna long-liner, although the captain paid application fees for fishing rights as required by local authorities.
The 90-tonne fishing vessel has 20 crew members from Taiwan, China, Indonesia and the Philippines. They were arrested when they were trying to steer the ship into a Somali port.
Attempts to negotiate with the Somali rebel militia for the vessel's release are difficult because Taiwan has no diplomatic relations with Somalia.
The Kaohsiung Fishermen's Association said that it is seeking help from human-rights organizations in the US through the Council of Agriculture and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to obtain the release of the vessel.
Somalia, with the longest coastline in Africa, is surrounded by waters ideal for tuna fishing.
The country has been troubled by factional fighting since the overthrow of military ruler Mohamed Said Barre in 1991.
Global bodies should stop excluding Taiwan for political reasons, President William Lai (賴清德) told Pope Francis in a letter, adding that he agrees war has no winners. The Vatican is one of only 12 countries to retain formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan, and Taipei has watched with concern efforts by Beijing and the Holy See to improve ties. In October, the Vatican and China extended an accord on the appointment of Catholic bishops in China for four years, pointing to a new level of trust between the two parties. Lai, writing to the pope in response to the pontiff’s message on Jan. 1’s
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TAKE BREAKS: A woman developed cystitis by refusing to get up to use the bathroom while playing mahjong for fear of disturbing her winning streak, a doctor said People should stand up and move around often while traveling or playing mahjong during the Lunar New Year holiday, as prolonged sitting can lead to cystitis or hemorrhoids, doctors said. Yuan’s General Hospital urologist Lee Tsung-hsi (李宗熹) said that he treated a 63-year-old woman surnamed Chao (趙) who had been sitting motionless and holding off going to the bathroom, increasing her risk of bladder infection. Chao would drink beverages and not urinate for several hours while playing mahjong with friends and family, especially when she was on a winning streak, afraid that using the bathroom would ruin her luck, he said. She had
MUST REMAIN FREE: A Chinese takeover of Taiwan would lead to a global conflict, and if the nation blows up, the world’s factories would fall in a week, a minister said Taiwan is like Prague in 1938 facing Adolf Hitler; only if Taiwan remains free and democratic would the world be safe, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Francois Wu (吳志中) said in an interview with Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera. The ministry on Saturday said Corriere della Sera is one of Italy’s oldest and most read newspapers, frequently covers European economic and political issues, and that Wu agreed to an interview with the paper’s senior political analyst Massimo Franco in Taipei on Jan. 3. The interview was published on Jan. 26 with the title “Taiwan like Prague in 1938 with Hitler,” the ministry
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