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President reiterates threats if Manila fails to respond

ROC Central News Agency

2013/05/13 16:01:26

Taipei, May 13 (CNA) President Ma Ying-jeou reiterated Monday that Taiwan will take action against the Philippines if it fails to respond by Tuesday midnight to Taiwan's demands related to the shooting death of a Taiwanese fisherman by a Philippine government ship.

"Our 72-hour ultimatum remains valid and we'll definitely take action if the Philippines fails to positively respond to our requests," Ma said while meeting with the speaker of Palau's House of Representatives at the Presidential Office.

Ma told Sabino Anastacio that a Philippine vessel strafed an unarmed Taiwanese fishing boat with automatic weapons in waters where the two countries' economic zones overlap on May 9, leaving one fisherman dead and the fishing boat seriously damaged.

"Such a move was unthinkable and outrageous," Ma told his guest.

It was not the first time that Philippine law enforcement officers had used brute force against Taiwanese fishermen, Ma said.

"Therefore, we have demanded that the Philippine government make a formal apology for the attack, make due compensation, conduct a thorough investigation into the case and punish those responsible for the killing," Ma said.

Taiwan has also asked the Philippines to negotiate a bilateral fishery agreement to prevent a recurrence of fishing disputes.

The Presidential Office issued an ultimatum on May 11 saying that if Manila did not respond positively to Taiwan's demands, Taiwan would suspend the processing of applications by Filipinos seeking employment in the country.

Taiwan also threatened to recall its representative to the Philippines and request that the Philippines' representative to Taiwan return to Manila.

Noting that Taiwan has maintained friendly relations with Southeast Asian countries, Ma said he hoped the incident could be resolved as soon as possible.

"We demand that the Philippines respond to our requests positively within 72 hours; otherwise, we may be forced to take punitive measures," Ma said.

He also praised Palau, one of Taiwan's 23 diplomatic allies, for its generosity in helping Taiwan resolve fishing disputes with third countries in the past.

"I'm very happy that there has been no similar shooting incident or fishing dispute between our two countries," he said.

Stressing that Taiwan treasures its friendship with Palau, Ma said he hopes relations between the two countries will further advance in the future.

He also expressed gratitude for Palau's support for Taiwan's bid to join international organizations, such as the International Civil Aviation Organization, and various international activities.

(By Lee Shu-hua and Sofia Wu)