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Up to Philippines to decide when report on shooting issued: Taiwan

ROC Central News Agency

2013/07/01 18:01:00

Taipei, July 1 (CNA) Taiwan's justice minister denied Monday that long-awaited investigative reports on the fatal shooting of a Taiwanese fisherman by Philippine Coast Guard personnel have yet to be issued because of a major disparity in their conclusions.

Justice Minister Tseng Yung-fu said the Philippines' report compiled by the National Bureau of Investigation has been completed and is simply awaiting the approval of the Philippine Presidential Office before it can be released.

Prosecutors in Pingtung County have also completed Taiwan's account of the incident, in which a Philippine patrol boat strafed the Kuang Ta Hsing No. 28 in the two countries' overlapping exclusive economic zones on May 9.

According to a United Daily News report Monday, Pingtung prosecutors have concluded that eight members of the Philippine crew were involved in the killing of the fishermen, compared witho only two in the Philippine version.

The Philippine version also contends that the two men used excessive force in self-defense and recommended only charging them with involuntary manslaughter, the UDN said, a conclusion that Taiwan's government would find inconsistent with the facts of the case.

The paper said the wide gap in the two sides' conclusions was holding up the release of the reports, but Tseng said he had not received any information that that was the case and hoped Manila would release its report as soon as possible.

Simon Shen-Yeaw Ko, Taiwan's deputy foreign minister, said Monday that Taiwan and the Philippines have entered the final stage of a deal to give each other legal assistance in investigating the incident, but he was also unclear when the reports would be released.

The May 9 incident sparked an ongoing diplomatic rift between the two countries, and the failure to publish the two reports more than one month after the attack occurred has raised doubts that the divide will be bridged anytime soon.

Soon after the shooting, Taiwan demanded that the Philippines issue a formal apology, compensate the victim's family, conduct a thorough investigation into the case and punish those involved, and hold talks on fishery issues to avoid a repeat of the attack.

Taiwan later imposed sanctions on Manila when the demands were not met. The Philippine investigative report is expected to have a major impact on whether or not Taipei lifts its punitive measures.

(By Angela Tsai, Tsai Pei-chi, Luke Sabatier and Y.L. Kao)