The Borneo Post

Taiwan, China in joint search for two missing fishermen

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TAIPEI: Taiwan and China are carrying out a joint search-andrescue mission for two missing crew members after a Chinese fishing boat capsized yesterday near an outlying Taiwanese island, killing two, Taipei’s coast guard said.

The coast guard dispatched four patrol vessels after it received a report around 6am Thursday (2200 GMT Wednesday) that the boat carrying six people had sunk 1.07 nautical miles southwest of the Kinmen Islands’ Dongding islet.

The joint operation, which includes six Chinese rescue ships, comes a month to the day after the Taiwanese coast guard’s pursuit of a Chinese fishing boat in the area left two men dead, fuelling ongoing tensions between Taipei and Beijing.

“With the joint efforts of the search-and-rescue units of both sides and the Dongding Garrison”, two crew members were rescued while two others “showed no signs of life”, the coast guard said in a statement.

Kinmen is a territory administer­ed by Taipei but located five kilometres from the Chinese city of Xiamen.

On Feb 14, a Chinese vessel carrying four people capsized near Kinmen while being pursued by the Taiwanese coast guard, throwing all on board into the water.

Two of the crew died and two others were rescued and temporaril­y detained in Kinmen.

A survivor reportedly said the boat was ‘rammed’, though Taiwan insists the coast guard was following legitimate procedures as the vessel had entered ‘prohibited waters’.

Beijing accused Taiwan of “seeking to evade their responsibi­lities and hide the truth” about the incident, while a Taiwanese coast guard official has said the boat involved was zigzagging, ‘lost its balance and capsized’ while trying to evade a patrol vessel.

Since the Feb 14 incident, Taiwan’s coast guard chief said an average of six to seven Chinese vessels have been in waters around Kinmen.

 ?? — AFP photo ?? Chinese Coast Guard personnel (in boat on left) and members of Taiwan’s Coast Guard taking part in a joint searchand-rescue mission after a Chinese fishing boat capsized in waters near Kinmen Islands’ Dongding islet.
— AFP photo Chinese Coast Guard personnel (in boat on left) and members of Taiwan’s Coast Guard taking part in a joint searchand-rescue mission after a Chinese fishing boat capsized in waters near Kinmen Islands’ Dongding islet.

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