Beijing condemns deaths of 2 mainland Chinese fishermen after Taiwan coastguard chase
- It calls for an investigation into ‘malicious incident’ and accuses the island’s coastguard of using ‘violent and dangerous methods’
- Coastguard says the fishermen drowned after their speedboat capsized while it was pursuing them for trespassing near Quemoy
It said the speedboat, with four fishermen on board, had entered the archipelago’s prohibited waters, 1.1 nautical miles east of Beiding.
“The people on board refused to heed our request for an inspection and [the boat] capsized as it sped away,” a Taiwanese coastguard official said on Thursday.
All four fishermen fell into the water during the pursuit and were rescued by the coastguard and taken to hospital, the official said. Two of the men were later pronounced dead, while the other two are in stable condition.
The official said the Kinmen prosecutor’s office was investigating the case.
Beijing strongly condemned the deaths and called for an investigation and assistance for the bereaved families, accusing the Taiwanese coastguard of using “violent and dangerous methods”.
“We express our deep sorrow and condolences to the families of the drowned,” Zhu Fenglian, a spokeswoman for China’s Taiwan Affairs Office, said in a statement late on Wednesday. “This malicious incident has severely harmed the feelings of compatriots on both sides of the Taiwan Strait.”