Taiwan pushes fisheries accord

MANILA, Philippines - After lifting the sanctions over the fatal shooting of a Taiwanese fisherman in May, Taipei is pushing for the next round of talks on a fisheries agreement with the Philippines.

Taiwan Foreign Minister David Y.L. Lin said the preparatory meeting on fisheries cooperation held last June 14 produced some concrete results and both sides agreed to continue negotiating on fisheries issues.

Lin said Taiwan now “calls on the Philippines to hold the next round of fisheries talks at the earliest possible time, continue to enhance mechanisms promoting maritime law enforcement without violence, and take concrete measures to mend bilateral relations, especially with regard to trade and economy, with a view to the eventual signing of an economic cooperation agreement.”

At the same time, Lin said the Philippines should promptly prosecute the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) personnel responsible for the fatal shooting of a Taiwanese fisherman in Balintang Channel three months ago.

“The Republic of China will continue routine patrols of its EEZ (exclusive economic zone) to the south to ensure the fishing operation rights and safety of its fishermen,” he added.

Taipei announced on Thursday it had lifted its sanctions against the Philippines after an official apology for the shooting incident involving Taiwan fishing boat Guang Da Xing No. 28.

The sanctions included a freeze on Filipino labor applications, a travel alert discouraging Taiwan citizens from traveling to the Philippines for tourism or business, and suspension of bilateral exchanges and visa exemptions.

Lin, at a press conference in Taipei, said “cooperative and friendly relations between the two countries are being restored.”

The announcement on the lifting of sanctions came after Amadeo Perez Jr., chairman of the Manila Economic and Cultural Office (MECO) and Antonio Basilio, Philippine representative to Taiwan, met with Lin to explain the government’s written response to the incident.

Perez traveled to the island of Xiaoliuqiu, off the southwest coast of Taiwan, to deliver a formal apology on behalf of President Aquino to the family of fisherman Hong Shi-cheng.

“The Philippine government has now responded positively to the four demands,” Lin said.

“An agreement on compensation has also been reached between attorneys for the victim’s family and for MECO,” he added.

The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) recommended that eight PCG personnel be indicted for homicide and four for obstruction of justice.

Lin said the NBI recommendations are largely in accord with those of the Taiwan investigation and the Philippine Department of Justice has promised to initiate judicial proceedings as soon as possible.

“Based on the traditional friendship between Taiwan and the Philippines, the ROC hopes for the speedy normalization of relations, especially in trade and economy, science and technology, and culture,” he said.

Focus on tourism

As the situation has stabilized, MECO said the government should also focus on bringing back Taiwanese tourists to the country.

Basilio said it would take time to recover from the huge decline in tourist arrivals after the fatal shooting of the Taiwanese fisherman three months ago.

“Before the incident they arrived here on chartered flights,” he said. “They need time to book chartered planes, but I think we will recover because of the positive relations with Taiwan.”

Basilio said around 150,000 Taiwanese tourists arrived from June to August last year and most of them went to Boracay and Palawan.

Poaching raps

Meanwhile, the PCG is leaving it up to the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) to decide if charges would be filed against the Taiwanese fishermen allegedly caught poaching in Balintang Channel last May 9.

“The entire operation is BFAR’s, not the Coast Guard… It is the BFAR that owns the ship. It is BFAR that says where the ship is going and our people report to them, so it should be BFAR that should file the poaching raps,” said PCG spokesman Cmdr. Armand Balilo.

Eight PCG men reportedly fired warning shots at the fleeing Taiwanese boat and later at its engine in an attempt to disable it, not knowing that the fishermen were hiding in the engine room, thus killing Hong, who suffered a gunshot wound in the neck.

Balilo earlier said many PCG men are experiencing “low morale” but assured the public that the Balintang Channel incident would not prevent them from performing their duties.

“The PCG supports the NBI findings and we would let due process take its natural course… PCG commandant Rear Admiral Rodolfo Isorena said that we should take this as an opportunity to grow as an organization that we should be united and probably learn from the lessons from this situation,” he added.

Balilo said at least five lawyers from the University of the Philippines and four lawyers from the University of Santo Tomas have offered to defend the case of the PCG men. -With Evelyn Macairan, Rudy Santos