Lawmakers across party lines said yesterday that the government should stand tough in dealing with a Philippine attack on a Taiwanese fishing vessel and provide better protection for the country’s fishing boats.
Fisherman Hung Shih-cheng (洪石成), 65, was shot dead on Thursday after a Philippine Coast Guard vessel fired at the fishing boat he was working on about 164 nautical miles (304km) off the southern coast of Taiwan.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Lin Kuo-cheng (林國正), who had previously been an official in a fishermen’s association in Kaohsiung, said the navy should help to protect fishing boats in the area, at least during the bluefin tuna season, as most disputes are reported then.
Photo: CNA
Another KMT lawmaker, Su Ching-chuan (蘇清泉), called on the government to launch air and naval forces to safeguard Taiwanese fishing boats during the bluefin tuna season, which begins in March and ends in June.
In accordance with international law, the manner in which the Philippines attacked the unarmed fishing vessels was tantamount to “an act of piracy,” KMT Legislator Chiu Wen-yen (邱文彥) said.
People First Party Legislator Thomas Lee (李桐豪) agreed with Chiu, saying the government “should not be soft-hearted in the face of pirate attacks.”
In addition to defending against aggressive behavior, the government could also consider imposing economic sanctions on the Philippines, including reducing the number of migrant workers allowed into Taiwan and elevating the travel advisory notice to the Philippines to the highest level, Lee said.
Meanwhile, KMT Legislator Alex Tsai (蔡正元) posted a message on his Facebook page saying: “It’s not an incident. It’s a war. Taiwan should attack and sink all Philippines government vessels once they sail into the waters, without exception.”
KMT Legislator Lin Yu-fang (林郁方) urged the Coast Guard Administration and the navy to “make proper preparations for possible conflict” in the South China Sea.
“The government should increase the frequency of patrols and extend the airport runway at [Taiwan-controlled] Taiping Island (太平島, Itu Aba),” Lin said.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) said she did not want to see the incident escalate into a more serious conflict, but stressed that the Philippines needed to conduct a thorough investigation and handle the issue with the utmost sincerity.
Meanwhile, DPP Chairman Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) yesterday demanded that President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) government ask for international reparations from the Philippine government.
Su said in a Facebook post that “only by such a move could Hung’s death be justified and his spirit appeased.”
Taiwan is a maritime nation and the government should establish a comprehensive security web for the nation’s fishing industry, he added.
This is not a singular incident, Su said, adding that it was a topic concerning national security and regional relations.
Taiwan must interact with its neighboring nations and in the process set up systems and standards for future governments, he said
Former DPP chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) also issued a statement, saying she was sad and regretted to learn of the incident.
The government must do something about the incident, Tsai said, who also issued a call for the Philippine government to immediately launch a judicial investigation into the incident.
Additional reporting by CNA
Twenty-four Republican members of the US House of Representatives yesterday introduced a concurrent resolution calling on the US government to abolish the “one China” policy and restore formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan. Led by US representatives Tom Tiffany and Scott Perry, the resolution calls for not only re-establishing formal relations, but also urges the US Trade Representative to negotiate a free-trade agreement (FTA) with Taiwan and for US officials to advocate for Taiwan’s full membership in the UN and other international organizations. In a news release announcing the resolution, Tiffany, who represents a Wisconsin district, called the “one China” policy “outdated, counterproductive
Actress Barbie Hsu (徐熙媛) has “returned home” to Taiwan, and there are no plans to hold a funeral for the TV star who died in Japan from influenza- induced pneumonia, her family said in a statement Wednesday night. The statement was released after local media outlets reported that Barbie Hsu’s ashes were brought back Taiwan on board a private jet, which arrived at Taipei Songshan Airport around 3 p.m. on Wednesday. To the reporters waiting at the airport, the statement issued by the family read “(we) appreciate friends working in the media for waiting in the cold weather.” “She has safely returned home.
ON PAROLE: The 73-year-old suspect has a criminal record of rape committed when he was serving in the military, as well as robbery and theft, police said The Kaohsiung District Court yesterday approved the detention of a 73-year-old man for allegedly murdering three women. The suspect, surnamed Chang (張), was arrested on Wednesday evening in connection with the death of a 71-year-old woman surnamed Chao (趙). The Kaohsiung City Police Department yesterday also unveiled the identities of two other possible victims in the serial killing case, a 75-year-old woman surnamed Huang (黃), the suspect’s sister-in-law, and a 75-year-old woman surnamed Chang (張), who is not related to the suspect. The case came to light when Chao disappeared after taking the suspect back to his residence on Sunday. Police, upon reviewing CCTV
TRUMP ERA: The change has sparked speculation on whether it was related to the new US president’s plan to dismiss more than 1,000 Joe Biden-era appointees The US government has declined to comment on a post that indicated the departure of Laura Rosenberger as chair of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT). Neither the US Department of State nor the AIT has responded to the Central News Agency’s questions on the matter, after Rosenberger was listed as a former chair on the AIT’s official Web site, with her tenure marked as 2023 to this year. US officials have said previously that they usually do not comment on personnel changes within the government. Rosenberger was appointed head of the AIT in 2023, during the administration of former US president Joe
RSS