A Japanese fishing boat operating close to a Taiwan-controlled island was boarded and then taken to a Chinese port, according to Taiwan’s coast guard, in a more uptick in tensions.
China has increased its influence on Taiwan since May when President Lai Ching-te took office, a person Beijing accuses of calling a” separatist” and has increased pressure on Taiwan.
The jellyfish fishing boat was in Chinese waters on Tuesday night when it was boarded and seized by two Foreign sea management boats, according to Taiwan’s coast guard, close to the Taiwan-administrated Kinmen islands, which are next to the Chinese places of Xiamen and Quanzhou.
The coast guard said the Taiwanese boat was operating during China’s no-fishing season, adding that Taiwan will communicate with China and ask them to release the fishermen as soon as possible.
The Taiwan boat was seized by southern Fujian coast guard officials because it carried out illegal trawling operations and broke a summer fishing ban, according to a statement from China’s coast guard.
The nets used were also far smaller than the minimum size China stipulates, so damaging marine fishery resources and the environment, it added.
During this period, Taiwan vessels tried to “interfere with” China’s normal law enforcement, and the Fujian officials warned and “drove them away” in line with the law, it said.
China’s Taiwan Affairs Office did not respond to a request for comment right away.
Taiwan sent its own coast guard ships to assist and issue warnings to China to release the fishing boat, but China’s ships responded by saying not to interfere, according to Taiwan’s coast guard.
The Taiwanese fishing vessel was then taken to a Chinese port, according to the statement, adding that three of the five fishermen were Indonesian migrant workers.
Hsieh Ching-chin, the deputy director-general of the Taiwan Coast Guard, told reporters in Taipei that China should explain why it had seized the boat, and that in some cases, fishermen had been released after paying fines when they had been operating during the country’s no-fishing season.
Taiwanese fishing boats need to become more alert, and the coast guard will increase its patrols, he added.
The coast guard also urges the mainland side to refrain from using political tactics to address this situation, according to Hsieh.
The Mainland Affairs Council, Taiwan’s top body for China policy, said it would “dispel unnecessary speculation” by reaching out to the Chinese authorities.
Judha Nugraha, director for citizen protection at Indonesia’s foreign ministry, told Reuters the country’s consulate general in Guangzhou will assist the detained Indonesians.
An official who spoke on condition of anonymity said that this is not the first time a Taiwan fishing boat has been taken by Chinese authorities after operating in that country’s waters.
A Taiwan official, who’s familiar with the island’s security planning, told Reuters they have issued alerts to fishing and transport authorities around Taiwan to pay attention to “possible risks” amid frequent Chinese coast guard activities in the region, including near Japan and the Philippines.
Taiwan and China frequently detain each other’s fishing boats that trespass. According to Taiwan’s coast guard data, five of these boats have been detained so far this year.
Since February, two Chinese fishermen died trying to flee Taiwan’s coast guard, so Chinese maritime enforcement and coast guard ships have been regularly operating around Kinmen.
