Breakthrough? Taiwan, Philippines Agree To Shun Violence At Sea

[Krueger]

After the shooting death of a fisherman and more than a month of diplomatic fury, Taiwan and the Philippines suddenly agreed to avoid violence when enforcing territorial rights in the ocean channel between them.

It’s the start of mending relations.

Violence pitted the two normally friendly Pacific Rim allies against each other on May 9. That day Manila’s coast guard shot a 65-year-old Taiwanese fisherman in a disputed tract of the 250 km-wide Luzon Strait. Taiwan took a series of sanctions against the Philippines, including a ban on labor imports, in retaliation for Manila’s defensive response at the time.

The nonviolence deal reached Friday answers one of Taiwan’s specific demands on the Philippines to atone for the shooting, which both sides have finished investigating with few surprises.

“One of the demands, for the speedy arrangement of negotiations on fishery matters, was designed to prevent similar incidents from recurring,” Taipei’s foreign ministry says in a statement that also heralds “concrete results” from the talks.

Taiwan eventually wants the two sides to negotiate long-term use of the fishery-rich strait. The Philippines normally holds fire when Taiwan’s fishing boats enter its ocean territory but regularly detains them.

Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou, beset by approval ratings around 20% partly because of perceived weakness against foreign governments, has made big waves to reach a deal that would let Taiwanese boats work the strait risk-free.

Taiwan has logged a total 22 arrests and detentions of its fishing boats by Philippine authorities, including another act of violence about seven years ago.

Ma is proud of a landmark accord in April with Japan, which agreed to let Taiwanese vessels trawl in 4,530 more square kilometers, easing tension in a separate sea dispute that has also netted bigger, angrier China. The Japan deal will be used as reference material to help Taiwan and the Philippines reach further agreements, the foreign ministry in Taipei says.

Friday’s talks between mid-ranking Taiwanese and Philippine envoys don’t go far enough to lift the sanctions, a foreign ministry spokesman. Preliminary only, they were held to prepare both sides for formal discussions on fishery issues.

But just the one day’s momentum points to a fast repair in relations. Taiwan and the Philippines also agreed to share maritime law enforcement procedures, find a way to notify each other fast when enforcement takes place and come up with a “mechanism” for releasing detained fishing vessels and their crews, the Taiwan foreign ministry statement says.

Breakthrough? Taiwan, Philippines Agree To Shun Violence At Sea - Forbes

 

[Parul]

Great!! Sanity Prevails....

 

[Zero_wing]

Great!! Sanity Prevails....

I hope so but i hope the Philippines EZZ will be respected

 

[NiceGuy]

Yeah,lets kill more Chinese-TWese and force them to make peace wt us after that

 

[USAHawk785]

bwahahahaha! What did I say in the beginning...within 4-6 weeks they'll forget this incident. Behind the scenes, Big American Daddy is active.

 

[Malaya]

The Philippines should not agree to Taiwan's request for fishing rights. If it does, expect thousands of Chinese fishing boats in our territories. As it is, there are so many illegal fishers in our areas, imagine if it becomes legal. Our own poor fishermen will have to compete against their gigantic fishing vessels. Our fishing grounds will also be depleted like theirs.

Also, our fishermen do not include endangered species among their catch, since it is forbidden by the Philippine law to do so. The Taiwanese, just like China, are actually in the seas in order to poach sea turtles, giant clams, and all the other endangered species.

The Philippines should never make any concessions to these people. The Taiwanese should not steal from their neighbors. Even with or without agreement they still violate other territory like what they did to Japan recently.

 

[Fsjal]

Taiwan should have shot some blank rounds at Philippine fishermen, just to scare them.

 

[Zero_wing]

Taiwan should have shot some blank rounds at Philippine fishermen, just to scare them.

ya right and will posting new ship in the area

 

[Malaya]

Noy urged: Junk Taiwan fishery pact
By Dennis Carcamo (philstar.com) | Updated June 19, 2013

MANILA, Philippines - Fisherfolk group Pamalakaya on Wednesday called on President Benigno Aquino III to scrap the proposed fishery pact with Taiwan, saying fishing deal would grant Taipei's industrial fishing fleets unlimited access to the country's ocean waters.

"We strongly advise Mr. Aquino to walk away and cease from giving the proposed fishery pact with Taiwan a try," Pamalakaya vice chairperson Salvador France said.

France maintained that the fishery pact which the Philippine government wants to clinch with Taiwan will put the country in an extremely disadvantageous position."

France said that only a handful of Philippine fishing fleets could explore the country's waters compared to the vastly improved Taiwanese fishing fleets which regularly poach inside the country's territorial waters.

"Less than 100 Filipino commercial fishing vessels are capable of exploring the West Philippine Sea for fishing expedition. Whereas, Taiwan, with its hundreds to thousands high tech and highly subsidized industrial fishing fleets are supremely capable of swallowing up all the resources in Philippine waters that rightfully belongs to the Filipino people," he added.

He said: "Taiwan wants unlimited fishing access in the Philippines, that is why it is pushing the government to enter into a bilateral fishing pact that would give Taipei unlimited fishing access in Philippine waters."

Noy urged: Junk Taiwan fishery pact | Nation, News, The Philippine Star | philstar.com

 

[Fsjal]

Even Taiwan has the ability to take up all resources, yet they have a smaller population.

Anyway, those waters rightfully belong to the Taiwanese natives.

 

[Apothecary]

Even Taiwan has the ability to take up all resources, yet they have a smaller population.

Anyway, those waters rightfully belong to the Taiwanese natives.

Evidence that those waters "rightfully" (by which i mean asinine claims) exclusively belong to the taiwanese natives?

 

[Reashot Xigwin]

Why are we comparing who sends the most ho' in a thread that said "Taiwan & the Philippines agree to shun violence"

This is my sister she is the number 4 best prostitute in all of Kazakhstan

THIS is something all of you should be discussing about:

THE governments of China and Taiwan are set to open their first representative offices in each others countries.

 

[soaringeagle]

As for us, we shall not look down on them because of their lack of education or because they are from rural area, regardless of their nationality.
We should put pressure on our government to help them get home, if that is what they wish.

 

[Reashot Xigwin]

Who started it?

Because of comments like these....

I'm with you man, Niceguy is a stupid troll that make the other Vietnamese member here looks like dick. We should just petition the mod here to ban his sorry @$$

 

[EastSea]

If you do this, you may kill many husbands and sons of vietnamese girls, because Taiwan and mainland china import vietnamese girls most.

This Chinese chinapakistan boy started troll first,

Why are we comparing who sends the most ho' in a thread that said "Taiwan & the Philippines agree to shun violence"

This is my sister she is the number 4 best prostitute in all of Kazakhstan

THIS is something all of you should be discussing about:

should Islam people in majority in Indonesia, proud on your sister ?