Taiwan fisherman released by Philippines in show of goodwill
2013/09/11 22:05:59
Taiwanese fisherman Tsai Po (in white) on board his boat.
Manila, Sept. 11 (CNA) Philippine authorities released a Taiwanese fisherman Wednesday after holding him eight days for alleged illegal fishing in the country's territorial waters.
Staff at Taiwan's representative office in Manila said the Philippine government has shown goodwill by granting a speedy release for Tsai Po, who comes from Hengchun in southern Taiwan.
The relatively quick resolution can be partly attributed to the outcome of a first round of fishery talks between the two countries which were necessitated by a serious dispute over the death of a Taiwanese fisherman at the hands of the Philippine Coast Guard in May, an official said.
Tsai was caught fishing in waters some 40 meters off Ditarem, an islet in the northern Philippine island province of Batanes, on Sept. 3. He was operating a motor-powered raft when he was arrested on charges of illegal entry into the Philippines and poaching.
Under Philippine law, Tsai could have faced a fine of US$200,000 and could have had his fishing equipment, raft and fish catch confiscated after lengthy judicial proceedings.
Instead, the Philippine Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources and local police agreed to deal with the case using administrative laws rather than judicial proceedings after the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Manila requested a speedy resolution.
While Tsai was slapped with an administrative fine of US$50,000, Philippine prosecutors dropped a poaching charge against him. The fine was paid on Tsai's behalf by Taiwan's representative to the Philippines, Raymond Wang, and other staff from his office.
The Philippine immigration office also went easy on Tsai by exempting him from detention and allowing him to navigate his raft back to Taiwan directly from the coastal town of Basco.
Tsai is expected to arrive back home in Hengchun early Thursday.
Taiwan-Philippines relations turned chilly after a Taiwanese fisherman was killed in disputed waters by the Phillippine Coast Guard in May. Ties have returned to normal since Taipei lifted its sanctions against Manila in August, and the two countries are set to hold a second round of fishery talks in Taipei in the near future.
(By Emerson Lim and Sofia Wu)
