Fishingboat Shooting Incident: Is Taiwan Over-reacting?

Since the shooting incident involving a Taiwanese fishing boat and a Philippine law enforcement boat, Taiwan has been in a rage to "bring justice" to the death of one of its fisherman. In the meantime, everything seems normal on the Philippine side, elections has just been concluded and all politicians are more concerned on the vote counting and winning than anything else.

The Taiwanese fishing boat Guang Ta Hsin 28

BFAR patrol boat MCS-3001, jointly manned by PCG & BFAR crew

The Taiwanese are insisting that the Philippines do three things, as follows:

1. make a public formal apology for the "murder" of their fisherman;

2. speed-up of investigations and punishment for the perpetrators;

3. pay compensation to the family of the dead fisherman.

Other than that, they also demand the Philippines to enter into talks with Taiwan regarding fishing rights on overlapping EEZs.

So far the Philippine response as of writing this are:

1. they sympathize with the fisherman's death, but no apology is required;

2. Taiwan should not make matters worse;

Taiwan's 72-hour ultimatum ends this midnight, and if their demands are not met, they will will freeze hiring of Filipino workers and use their economic superiority against the Philippines. 

1. Setting the EEZ Boundaries

According to Searoundus.org, blue color shows Taiwan's EEZ. The green color shows disputed EEZ. The incident happened outside Taiwan's EEZ if based on this photo.

It should be noted that since Taiwan is not recognized as an independent country by the United Nations, they are not a signatory of the UNCLOS although the Philippines adheres to this international agreement as a UN signatory.

Following the laws on EEZ, the overlap of two country's EEZ will require both countries to agree on the boundary. So far it appears that both countries have not made any agreement on the boundary of their EEZ, so Taiwan insists that the waters of overlapping EEZ are disputed.

But most sources on EEZ show that the accepted boundary of both country's EEZ is somewhere mid-way of the overlap, or midway of Orchid Island (Taiwan) and Mavudis Island (Philippines). Basing on this, the general EEZ boundary should be within the middle of Bashi Channel.

2. Location of Incident:

The Taiwanese boat crew insist that they did not enter Philippine jurisdiction area, while the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) - Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) joint crew insist that they were inside their jurisdiction. 

Philippines' Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) Director Asis Perez points at the monitor the exact location where Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) intercepted 4 Taiwanese fishing vessels at 43 NM east of Balintang Island, Luzon Strait, during a news conference in Manila May 10, 2013.
(caption and photo from Reuters)

On the Philippine side, the BFAR reported that 4 Taiwanese fishing boats were intercepted by BFAR boat 43nmi east of Balintan Island, well within the Philippine side of the EEZ boundary. Philippine news reports all point to 170nmi from Taiwan southernmost point.

An illustration with Chinese caption from News365 (China)
(photo posted by McKoyzz@PDFF)

Taiwanese and Chinese sources agree that the boats were operating between 164nmi to 180nmi from Taiwan's southmost tip at Erluanbi. A recent report from Taiwan's Coast Guard Administration (CGA) also points the incident to be outside Taiwan's "control border". Below is the said report, from http://www.cga.gov.tw/GipOpen/wSite/public/Attachment/f1368153033684.pdf

(Translation in English):

Boat Operation:
Time: 05.00
Coordinate: 19' 50" N; 123' 24" E
10 nm outside Taiwan control border

Incident:
Time: 09.45
Coordinate: 19' 58" N; 122' 58" E
1.8 nm outside Taiwan control border

Incident Reported to Taiwan Authority:
Time: 13.04
Coordinate: 20' 07" N; 123' 01" E
5 nm insider Taiwan control border

Take note that according to Taiwan's CGA, the Taiwanese control border is close to the northern-most island of Batanes group of islands rather than further north in the middle of the Bashi Channel. 

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Foreign news sources like BBC reported the location as 170nmi from Taiwan, similar to most Philippine sources.

An illustration from AFP shows the incident happened at the Balintang Channel, or inside Philippine EEZ.

Judging from these compilation from Philippine, Taiwanese and 3rd country sources, it is generally accepted that the Taiwanese boats were indeed discovered well inside Philippine jurisdiction. 

3. The Shooting Incident

Using a combination of Taiwan's CGA report and Philippine Coast Guard sources, it appears that 4 Taiwanese fishing boats were spotted by BFAR patrol boat MCS-3001 on May 9, 2013 at around 5:00AM. The boats were hailed and approached by MCS-3001 for boarding and inspection. But instead of stopping to be boarded, all 4 boats moved away towards Taiwan's direction. 

A chase ensued for more than 4 hours, with the BFAR-PCG boat giving warnings to stop using alarms or sirens, and loudspeaker annoucements. The Philippine boat made several attempts to board one of the boats but while doing so other fishing boats attempt to ram the Philippine boat. They were able to avoid collision in all those instances. This chase went on until around 9:30AM when the BFAR-PCG boat made warning shots for them to stop, but the 4 fishing boats did not heed the warning and instead continue to move away.

Around 9:40AM, the Philippine boat decided to disable the machinery of one of the fishing boats, the Guang Ta Hsin 28, by shooting at its engine and machinery room. Several shots were made using its on-board machine gun, hitting the fishing boat in several areas. One of the bullets hit the neck of 65-year old Mr. Huang Shih-Cheng who was staying in the engine room of the fishing boat, killing him in the process.

The boats continued to press on until Taiwanese CGA vessels met them to escort back to Taiwan. During the entire chase, Taiwan CGA was already informed that they were being chased by Philippine law enforcement boat.



According to the son of the dead fisherman, they did not cross waters of Philippine jurisdiction, and that no warning shots were made by the Philippine group.

4. Taiwanese and Philippine Government Actions:

Taiwanese and Chinese media were quick to release news reports on the incident, initially accusing the Philippine Navy, while the Philippine side initially used these reports while awaiting for confirmation from the Philippine Government. The Philippine Navy later denied being involved, later on the Philippine Coast Guard admitted that they did indeed shot the Taiwanese fishing boat.

Taiwan later on released a 72-hour ultimatum demanding for a Philippine apology and action against the PCG-BFAR crew of MCS-3001, which ends at 12:00 midnight today. Philippine officials said they sympathize the death of Mr. Huang but no apology is expected to be given. President Aquino asked the Taiwanese government to calm on the incident while investigations are ongoing. 

With the deadline of the ultimatum nearing, the Philippine government announced that they are looking for possible alternative markets for Philippine labor in case of a clampdown in Taiwan. Taiwan announced to hold military exercises at the "overlapping" EEZ as a show of strength, with strong words indicating that the Philippine Navy is more than a match for their naval capability.

There are no major reactions from other countries, with their common ally, the United States, not making any condemnation remarks against the Philippines.

By around 3:00PM of May 14, the Philippine government imposed a news blackout regarding the issue. There were also reports from Filipino workers in Taiwan of being physically hurt by Taiwanese citizens especially near port areas.

A note from one of the OFWs in Taiwan appealing for restraint and assistance. Left side of the note shows the instructions from employment agency to avoid public exposure.
(photo from Facebook)

5. MaxDefense Opinion on what the Philippines should do:

MaxDefense (MD) believes that all actions made by the Taiwanese are over-reactions only, and were made by their government due to mounting pressure from the political opposition and the citizenry. It would be bad for the political careers of Taiwanese officials to stay mum and do nothing. 

It would be worth noting that Taiwanese President Ma has been under pressure in the homefront due to domestic issues like housing, cost of living, and job security. An indecisive action on this issue will spell doom on his political career.

MD believes that the Philippine government is aware and understands the Taiwanese government's actions, the situation of the ruling KMT party. But the Philippines' non-compliance  to Taiwan's demands is a move that we at MD agrees. So far only President Aquino knows the reason of his decision on this issue other than what are obvious.

As for the shooting, MD wonders - a more than 4-hour chase to reach Taiwan's control area at possibly high speed means that the Taiwanese are indeed deep inside Philippine waters. So the BFAR-PCG is indeed in the right place at the right time when they saw the Taiwanese flotilla.

The Philippines should not bow down to Taiwan's demands due to the following reasons:

a. If it believes that what the PCG-BFAR team did was necessary, then why agree to Taiwan? Although bigger than the fishing boats, ramming of the patrol boat while being hailed to halt is itself a show of disrespect to Philippine law enforcement and is a possible evidence of guilt on the Taiwanese part. Also, the Filipino patrol boat captain may have thought of his ship and crew's safety first above all, which is the right thing to do. Shooting the fishing boat's machinery is a way of stopping a runaway suspect, it just happened that somebody was in there who unfortunately died.

b. To maintain integrity its territorial jurisdiction. Apologizing to the Taiwanese will mean accepting that they are correct and our coast guard team was wrong. It also means agreeing that they were inside disputed waters instead of undisputed Philippine territorial waters. The Taiwanese can also start to dispute the sovereign rights of the Philippines in the Balabac Channel and the Batanes group of islands if the Philippines agree to apologize, and further claims of Taiwan to Batanes and the EEZ will strengthen in the process.

c. Philippine pride and prestige is at stake here. There were instances that South Korea, Japan, and Russia did not apologize to China when they shot Chinese fishing boats operating in their jurisdictions. Should the Philippines apologize, it will only make it appear weak and can be bullied by its neighbors and it is expected that Taiwan, China, and everyone else can poach again in Philippine waters in the future

d. The Philippines will lose some, but so is Taiwan. The Taiwanese labor market for the Philippines may be reduced and become less attractive, forcing many Filipinos to leave their jobs there to come back home. They might be jobless, but they can find work again either in the Philippines or in another country. In the mean time, Taiwan will lose cheap and english-proficient workers in the process, and this will affect their manufacturing industry.

e. A change in political strategy when dealing with neighbors will disrupt the usual expected "bow-down" reply streak of the Philippine government. This would be a good start in imposing the Philippines' foreign policies as well to other countries. Maybe this would be the start of an "upgrade" of perception on the Philippine foreign relations scene.

Other points that can be learned from this incident for the Philippines:

1. The Philippines has to give utmost importance to territorial control and integrity, and strict enforcement of its laws and jurisdiction must become a part of its long term national strategy and policy.

2. The importance of supporting its armed forces and civilian maritime law enforcement agencies. The Philippine government must put national defense in its top priority, be given support and budget to modernize and up-arm. For its size, MD believes that the Philippine military is manpower-short and poorly equipped for its economic capacity and population.

3. The Philippine government must strive hard to make further reforms in its economic policies. It should be less dependent on OFW remittances and instead diversify its economy. This includes more in-country industry and jobs for its citizens to minimize the need to send workers to other countries like Taiwan.

4. At least as early as now, the Philippines can show to the world that it can stand on its own without the need to appease its neighbors to survive and continue. Bowing down to Taiwan and losing its pride now will not bring back the lost pride, but this issue will fade and the Philippines can save face by surviving and knowing its neighbors well.

6. Taiwan's Threat of Military Exercises near the Philippines' EEZ

The recent threats of Taiwan to hold military exercises must be looked at by the Philippine government. Although it is not expected for the Taiwanese military to do something bolder than only having exercises, the Philippine government should not be lax and instead be alert for any further contingencies. 

This is where the lack of military capability of the Armed Forces of the Philippines shows. In the case of South Korea and Japan, any military exercises made by China in disputed areas are met by deployments of naval and air units as a bold display of capability to resist any possible Chinese action. The Philippine Navy can only monitor with its antiquated equipment, and even if they bring all their assets on the border it will not make the Taiwanese think twice. As they even said earlier, only one of their 22 frigates can annihilate the entire Philippine Navy if shooting starts. That should concern the Philippine government as threats like that should be taken seriously.

On the other hand, Taiwan should be wary of its threats and actions. They have forgotten that the Philippines is one of their few friends in the region against China. Although Taiwan-China relations are in all time high with the Chinese even cheering for the Taiwanese against the Philippines. But until the lines have been set and it continues to be under America's defense and security umbrella, the Philippines is its partner. The Americans are surprisingly silent on this situation, but  they are expected to be already making their moves deep within the Taiwanese and Philippine governments. 


7.  Possible American-supplied arms against an American treaty-ally?

Taiwan should also remember that the military assistance rendered by the United States to them is for them to defend from aggression from China. Using American military wares to hurt one of its treaty allies may have implications against Taiwan. Imagine Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigates, Kidd-class destroyers and F-16 and F-5 fighters being used against an American ally. Everyone is free to speculate the American reaction. The United States remains as Taiwan's single most trusted arms supplier, with the French reportedly abandoning them in supporting and maintaining the Mirage 2000 fighter planes and Lafayette-class frigates the Taiwanese bought from them.

MaxDefense will add more commentaries later on.