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29 March 2024

Taiwan halts hiring Filipinos; Manila calls for calm

Published
By Correspondent

Taiwan has stopped hiring Filipino workers and will recall its envoy to Manila, which called for calm in the midst of an escalating dispute with Taipei over the death of a Taiwanese fisherman in a confrontation with the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG).
 
In a report datelined Taipei, Agence France-Presse (AFP) said the order came from Taiwan’s President Ma Ying-jeou as an expression of “strong dissatisfaction” over the way Manila has handled the incident involving a Taiwanese fishing boat that apparently strayed into Philippine waters.
 
About 87,000 Filipinos work as domestic helpers and in other sectors in Taiwan.
 
On Monday, President Benigno Aquino III called for both parties to stay calm, saying that Manila’s de facto embassy in Taipei was making representations to Taiwanese foreign ministry officials that the incident was being investigated.
 
“I think it is in the interest of both parties to proceed calmly,” he told reporters at the presidential palace called Malacañan. “We are proceeding in that manner.”
 
PCG admitted on Friday to having fired at one of four Taiwanese fishing vessels in Philippine waters, killing 65-year-old Hung Shih-chen during a confrontation.
 
But it said its personnel acted in self defence when they shot at ‘Kuang Ta Hsing No 28’, which was then sailing some 80km off the Balintang Channel near Batanes, an island-province that’s part of the Philippines’ biggest island of Luzon.
 
The AFP report quoted Taiwan President Ma’s spokeswoman as saying, “President Ma expressed his strong dissatisfaction over the Philippines’ lack of sincerity and its shifting attitude.” It said that a decision has been made to recall Taipei’s envoy to Manila.
 
The Philippines’ de facto ambassador to Taiwan, Antonio Basilio, had also been asked to go back to Manila, so that he can help look into the case, the AFP report said.
 
Despite an apology by Basilio during a closed-door meeting with Foreign Minister David Lin on Tuesday, Taiwan has threatened to adopt more sanctions after the freeze order it gave on hiring of Filipino workers if Manila did not meet its demands.
 
President Ma’s demands are the following: Manila should issue a “formal apology”, compensate the victim’s family, apprehend the killer and start fishing talks between the two sides soon.
 
The Philippines will be sending a special envoy, Amadeo Perez, chairman of the Manila Economic and Cultural Office (Meco), to hold further talks with Taiwanese officials about the incident. Meco represents Philippine interests in Taiwan.
 
Taiwan sent four coastguard and naval vessels during the weekend, reportedly to protect its fishermen in waters near the Philippines.
 
Taiwanese fishermen burned Philippine flags in protest over the incident, which PCG and Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) said “resulted in the unfortunate loss of life of a Taiwanese fisherman during the routine lawful enforcement activities against poaching in Philippine waters”.