The incident highlights problems aboard Taiwan’s distant water fishing vessels, which NGOs say operate in an unregulated, lawless environment.
The News Lens
Date: 2018/05/21
By: Nick Aspinwall
An Indonesian fisherman aboard the Taiwanese fishing boat Ming Man Hsiang No. 38
Photo Credit: Greenpeace
remains missing after being stabbed and pushed overboard by a fellow crew member during an altercation on Thursday.
The Tung Kang Fisherman Association of Pingtung County told Taiwanese news agency CNA that the fishing boat was 530 nautical miles (982 km) northeast of Guam at the time.
The association said that the suspect, who had knife cuts on his arms, was in an emotionally unstable state, prompting the boat’s Taiwanese captain, surnamed Ku (辜), to ask for help from Taiwan’s Fisheries Agency (FA). The suspect is currently being detained by the nine other Indonesian fishermen on board the vessel.
A representative of Presbyterian Church in Taiwan Seamen and Fishermen’s Service Center (漁民服務中心) (PCTSFSC) who asked not to be named told The News Lens that the FA has asked the Coast Guard to meet the boat at sea and provide assistance, after which it will lead the vessel back to shore. The Coast Guard will reach the fishing boat on Wednesday or Thursday. [FULL STORY]
