Government officials yesterday confirmed a local media report that said Somali pirates have recently demanded an exorbitant ransom from the family of Wu Lai-yu (吳來于), the captain of Jih-chun Tsai No. 68, held by the pirates since April 1.
Citing sources among Wu’s friends, the Chinese-language United Daily News reported yesterday that Somali pirates had recently demanded a ransom of US$8 million, several times higher than the average ransom paid in similar situations in the past. The paper said Wu told his friends via telephone that he had been physically crippled by the ordeal, adding that Wu’s family has pleaded with Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs for help with the ransom negotiations and the release of Wu and the ship.
The ministry’s Department of African Affairs Director-General Samuel Chen (陳士良) said yesterday that the ministry was aware of the situation and that there was little the government could do to negotiate the release of the vessel.
“We all have much sympathy for [the family members] and understand that it is an unaffordable ransom for the owner of the ship, which is not a large company … but if the government takes part in the negotiation, it would give pirates more leeway to demand an even higher ransom,” Chen said.
Chen said he could also expect negotiations with pirates to become more difficult in the future if the government got involved because it could embolden pirates.
The ship was seized by Somali pirates on April 1 when it was operating 368 nautical miles (682km) from the Somali coast with a crew of two Chinese and 11 Indonesians.
Immediately after the hijacking, the ministry sought help from the Piracy Reporting Center at the International Maritime Organization’s International Maritime Bureau in Kuala Lumpur, the UK’s Maritime Trade Organization and the US Fifth Fleet under Naval Forces Central Command in Bahrain to rescue the hijacked vessel.
Aside from the Jih-chun Tsai No. 68, another Taiwanese fishing vessel, Tai Yuan 227, is still being held hostage by Somalia pirates.
The Tai Yuan 227, with a crew of 28, including nine Chinese, three Vietnamese, three Filipinos, seven Kenyans and two Mozambicans, was seized on May 6 in an area north off the Indian Ocean archipelago of the Seychelles as it headed for the Maldives.
Ecoterra International, an environmental non-governmental organization monitoring maritime activity, said at least 22 foreign vessels and one barge are being held by Somali pirates.
RESOLUTIONS DEBATE: Taiwan’s allies said that UN and WHA resolutions cited by China and other nations ‘do not determine Taiwan’s participation in WHO activities’ A proposal to invite Taiwan to this year’s World Health Assembly (WHA) was rejected on Monday, resulting in Taipei’s absence from the annual meeting for a ninth consecutive year, although partners spoke up for Taiwan’s participation at the first day of the meeting. The first agenda item after the opening was a “two-on-two debate” on a proposal to invite Taiwan to participate at the WHA as an observer. Similar to previous years, two countries made statements in favor of the proposal, while two others expressed their opposition. Philippine Secretary of Health Teodoro Herbosa, president of the 78th WHA, accepted the WHA General Committee’s
Palauan President Surangel Whipps Jr arrived in Taiwan last night to kick off his first visit to the country since beginning his second term earlier this year. After arriving at Taoyuan International Airport at around 6:30 pm, Whipps and his delegation were welcomed by Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍). Speaking to gathered media, the Palauan leader said he was excited and honored to be back in Taiwan on his first state visit to Taiwan since he was sworn in this January. Among those traveling with Whipps is Minister of State Gustav N. Aitaro, Public Infrastructure
Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) on Friday laid out the Cabinet’s updated policy agenda and recapped the government’s achievements ahead of the one-year anniversary of President William Lai’s (賴清德) inauguration. Cho said the government had made progress across a range of areas, including rebuilding Hualien, cracking down on fraud, improving pedestrian safety and promoting economic growth. “I hope the public will not have the impression that the Cabinet only asked the legislature to reconsider a bunch of legal amendments,” Cho said, calling the moves “necessary” to protect constitutional governance and the public’s interest. The Cabinet would work toward achieving its “1+7” plan, he said. The
Nvidia founder and CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) hosted a dinner in Taipei last night with key Taiwanese suppliers to celebrate the successful mass production of the company’s new Blackwell AI systems. Speaking to the media earlier yesterday, Huang thanked Nvidia’s Taiwanese partners for their contributions to the company’s ecosystem, while also sharing his plans to meet with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) founder Morris Chang (張忠謀). In response to rumors that Nvidia will launch a downgraded Hopper H20 chip for China in July, Huang dismissed the reports, saying, “That is not true.” He clarified that there
RSS