A crewmember of a Taiwanese fishing boat yesterday told authorities of a harrowing ordeal in which his boat was attacked in the Philippine Sea by pirates possibly disguised as military personnel, resulting in the shooting death of his brother.
The crewman, who himself was shot in the leg during the attack, said he saw people in military uniforms shooting at him before boarding the boat.
But Philippine authorities said no naval or coast guard personnel were involved, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
PHOTO: CHEN HSIEN-YI, TAIPEI TIMES
"Philippine authorities have told the ministry that no naval and coast guard vessels were in those waters when the incident occurred," ministry spokesman Michel Lu (呂慶龍) said yesterday.
"We do not know whether these were pirates disguised as military personnel in order to commit the crime. We need more time to clear up the matter," Lu added.
The Taitung District Prosecutors' Office yesterday also launched an investigation into the incident.
PHOTO: HUANG CHIH-YUAN, TAIPEI TIMES
The fishing vessel Man Chun Yi was attacked in the Philippines Sea on Sunday morning.
The vessel's 68-year-old captain, Chen An-lao (陳安老), was shot dead and his 62-year-old brother, crewman Chen Ming-te (陳明德), was badly wounded.
Two Chinese nationals working on the boat were uninjured.
Chen Ming-te yesterday told police that the fishing boat was shot at by five people in military-style uniforms, but the boat they used did not look like a military vessel.
"They fired dozens of shots, and then raided the boat," he said.
The attackers fled with the boat's catch of fish.
After receiving reports from another Taiwanese fishing boat near the site of the incident, four Coast Guard Administration patrol boats and a helicopter came to assist the Man Chun Yi.
SERIOUS INJURY
The coast guard said its personnel were unable to lift Chen Ming-te to the helicopter because of the seriousness of his injury, instead moving him to a coast guard vessel and taking him to Orchid Island, situated off the nation's southeastern coast.
A helicopter waiting on the island then airlifted Chen Ming-te to a Kaohsiung hospital early yesterday morning, the coast guard said.
Doctors said Chen Ming-te's condition had stabilized.
Chen An-lao's body was taken to Taitung pending the prosecutors' probe.
The Man Chun Yi, based in Taitung County, was attacked as it traveled between the Philippines' Batan Islands and Babuyan Islands in the Bashi Channel.
Local fishermen's associations yesterday called for the government to increase protective measures for the nation's fishing boats from pirate attacks.
‘SECRETS’: While saying China would not attack during his presidency, Donald Trump declined to say how Washington would respond if Beijing were to take military action US President Donald Trump said that China would not take military action against Taiwan while he is president, as the Chinese leaders “know the consequences.” Trump made the statement during an interview on CBS’ 60 Minutes program that aired on Sunday, a few days after his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) in South Korea. “He [Xi] has openly said, and his people have openly said at meetings, ‘we would never do anything while President Trump is president,’ because they know the consequences,” Trump said in the interview. However, he repeatedly declined to say exactly how Washington would respond in
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said yesterday that China using armed force against Taiwan could constitute a "survival-threatening situation" for Japan, allowing the country to mobilize the Japanese armed forces under its security laws. Takaichi made the remarks during a parliamentary session yesterday while responding to a question about whether a "Taiwan contingency" involving a Chinese naval blockade would qualify as a "survival-threatening situation" for Japan, according to a report by Japan’s Asahi Shimbun. "If warships are used and other armed actions are involved, I believe this could constitute a survival- threatening
WARFARE: All sectors of society should recognize, unite, and collectively resist and condemn Beijing’s cross-border suppression, MAC Minister Chiu Chui-cheng said The number of Taiwanese detained because of legal affairs by Chinese authorities has tripled this year, as Beijing intensified its intimidation and division of Taiwanese by combining lawfare and cognitive warfare, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. MAC Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) made the statement in response to questions by Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Puma Shen (沈柏洋) about the government’s response to counter Chinese public opinion warfare, lawfare and psychological warfare. Shen said he is also being investigated by China for promoting “Taiwanese independence.” He was referring to a report published on Tuesday last week by China’s state-run Xinhua news agency,
‘ADDITIONAL CONDITION’: Taiwan will work with like-minded countries to protect its right to participate in next year’s meeting, the foreign ministry said The US will “continue to press China for security arrangements and protocols that safeguard all participants when attending APEC meetings in China,” a US Department of State spokesperson said yesterday, after Beijing suggested that members must adhere to its “one China principle” to participate. “The United States insists on the full and equal participation of all APEC member economies — including Taiwan — consistent with APEC’s guidelines, rules and established practice, as affirmed by China in its offer to host in 2026,” the unnamed spokesperson said in response to media queries about China putting a “one China” principle condition on Taiwan’s
RSS