A Taiwanese woman demanded compensation yesterday from US troops whose actions, she believes, led to the death of her husband.
Her husband was the skipper of a Taiwanese long-line fishing vessel hijacked by Somali pirates on March 30 last year.
Wu Lai-yu (吳來于), captain of the Jih Chun Tsai No. 68, died on May 20 during an exchange of fire between the long liner, which was used by the pirates as a mother ship, and the USS Stephen W. Groves in the Indian Ocean.
Photo: Yeh Yung-chien, Taipei Times
The death surprised Wu’s family, who had reached a ransom deal late last month with the pirates following a painstaking negotiation that lasted more than a year.
The pirates agreed to release Wu and the 79 tonne vessel in one month upon receiving the ransom. The amount of the ransom is not clear, but it was less than the US$8 million the pirates originally demanded.
Wu’s wife said yesterday through Tsai Pao-hsing (蔡寶興), secretary-general of the Liouciou Fishery Association, that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs should help her seek compensation from the US.
She said that the US troops saved two Chinese crewmembers, but allowed Wu’s body to sink along with the fishing vessel rather than retrieve it for the family.
A day earlier, the ministry said it had asked the Taipei office of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) to provide a complete investigation report on the incident.
The AIT has sent staff to convey condolences to the family, the ministry said.
More than 100 Taiwanese fishing vessels operate in the Indian Ocean, but they are not escorted by military ships, unlike their Chinese and South Korean counterparts, Tsai said.
The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) yesterday said it had deployed patrol vessels to expel a China Coast Guard ship and a Chinese fishing boat near Pratas Island (Dongsha Island, 東沙群島) in the South China Sea. The China Coast Guard vessel was 28 nautical miles (52km) northeast of Pratas at 6:15am on Thursday, approaching the island’s restricted waters, which extend 24 nautical miles from its shoreline, the CGA’s Dongsha-Nansha Branch said in a statement. The Tainan, a 2,000-tonne cutter, was deployed by the CGA to shadow the Chinese ship, which left the area at 2:39pm on Friday, the statement said. At 6:31pm on Friday,
PEAK MONTHS: Data showed that on average 25 to 27 typhoons formed in the Pacific and South China seas annually, with about four forming per month in July and October One of three tropical depressions in the Pacific strengthened into a typhoon yesterday afternoon, while two others are expected to become typhoons by today, Central Weather Administration (CWA) forecaster Lee Ming-hsiang (李名翔) said yesterday. The outer circulation of Tropical Depression No. 20, now Typhoon Mitag, has brought light rain to Hualien, Taitung and areas in the south, Lee said, adding that as of 2pm yesterday, Mitag was moving west-northwest at 16kph, but is not expected to directly affect Taiwan. It was possible that Tropical Depression No. 21 would become a typhoon as soon as last night, he said. It was moving in a
The American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) put Taiwan in danger, Ma Ying-jeou Foundation director Hsiao Hsu-tsen (蕭旭岑) said yesterday, hours after the de facto US embassy said that Beijing had misinterpreted World War II-era documents to isolate Taiwan. The AIT’s comments harmed the Republic of China’s (ROC) national interests and contradicted a part of the “six assurances” stipulating that the US would not change its official position on Taiwan’s sovereignty, Hsiao said. The “six assurances,” which were given by then-US president Ronald Reagan to Taiwan in 1982, say that Washington would not set a date for ending arm sales to Taiwan, consult
A Taiwanese academic yesterday said that Chinese Ambassador to Denmark Wang Xuefeng (王雪峰) disrespected Denmark and Japan when he earlier this year allegedly asked Japan’s embassy to make Taiwan’s representatives leave an event in Copenhagen. The Danish-language Berlingske on Sunday reported the incident in an article with the headline “The emperor’s birthday ended in drama in Copenhagen: More conflict may be on the way between Denmark and China.” It said that on Feb. 26, the Japanese embassy in Denmark held an event for Japanese Emperor Naruhito’s birthday, with about 200 guests in attendance, including representatives from Taiwan. After addressing the Japanese hosts, Wang
RSS