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Philippine envoy apologizes to Taiwanese people

ROC Central News Agency

2013/05/15 20:42:37

Taipei, May 15 (CNA) The chairman of the Manila Economic and Cultural Office (MECO) extended an apology Wednesday to the people of Taiwan over an attack by one of his government's vessels on a Taiwanese fishing boat.

As a personal representative of Philippine President Benigno Aquino III, Amadeo Perez arrived in Taiwan earlier that day "to extend our heartfelt apology to the family of the fisherman who was shot in the channel between Taiwan and the Philippines," the envoy said.

MECO represents the Philippines' interests in Taiwan in the absence of diplomatic ties.

Asked if he was offering a government-to-government apology, Perez said he was authorized by the Philippine president. Pressed to make it clear, he said he was here to extend an apology "to the people of Taiwan."

The diplomatic row erupted after a joint patrol of the Philippine Coast Guard and the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources strafed a Taiwanese fishing boat, the Kuang Ta Hsing No. 28, while it was operating in the overlapping economic zones of the two countries May 9.

Sixty-five-year-old Hung Shih-cheng of Pingtung County was shot dead in the incident.

Perez said he would visit the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Thursday to further discuss issues related to the event.

Ministry officials had earlier refused to meet Perez, describing him as "not sufficiently authorized" to represent his government.

However, Perez and the Philippines' de facto ambassador to Taiwan, Antonio Basilio, were eventually greeted by James Chou, deputy director-general of the ministry's Department of East Asian and Pacific Affairs.

The ministry said the 40-minute meeting was not a negotiation but an evaluation of whether the Philippines was able to fully meet Taiwan's demands.

In an ultimatum issued May 11, Taiwan demanded that the Philippines officially apologize, compensate the victim's family, conduct an investigation as soon as possible and bring those responsible to justice, and begin talks on the signing of a bilateral fishery agreement at the earliest possible date.

As the Philippines did not provide satisfactory responses to Taiwan's demands by 6 p.m. Wednesday, Taiwan decided to impose further sanctions in addition to its earlier suspension of the processing of applications by Filipinos to work in Taiwan.

It recalled the representative to Manila and told the Philippines' representative to Taiwan to return to his home country immediately.

The eight measures taken in the second wave of sanctions include issuing a red travel alert for the Philippines to discourage sightseeing or business trips, and suspending high-level exchanges, such as a ministerial-level meeting at the World Health Assembly next week.

Taiwan is also suspending economic exchanges and business promotion activities, bilateral agricultural and fishery cooperation, technology research exchange and cooperation projects, bilateral aviation rights negotiations, and visa-free treatment for Filipinos, and is mounting a joint exercise involving the Navy and the Coast Guard Administration in waters south of Taiwan.

The premier said the Philippines has not shown sufficient sincerity and has been oscillating in its handling of the case, making it necessary for Taiwan to take the further retaliatory action.

(By James Lee)