Taiwan's
Fisheries Agency said Saturday that two of three Taiwanese ships suspected of
operating illegally in Indonesian waters have fled the area before being
apprehended and the third was on its way.
Indonesia's
Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries said Friday that it had detected 13
foreign vessels suspected of fishing illegally in its exclusive economic zone.
Indonesian
authorities identified four Taiwanese ships among the 13 — the Goang Shing Lih
No. 6, the Shin Jyi Chyuu No. 36, the Jin Yu Cheng, and the Yi Feng No. 682 —
and asked the country's Navy to track and seize the ships. The Fisheries Agency
said after checking, only Shin Jyi Chyuu No. 33 is on record.
The
Fisheries Agency, which has monitored the whereabouts of the boats, said the Yi
Feng No. 682 and Goang Shing Lih No. 6 are already out of Indonesian waters and
were sailing in Palau's exclusive economic zone as of Saturday noon.
The Jin Yu
Cheng, which was sailing in a northeasterly direction trying to flee Indonesian
waters Friday evening, was still moving, but the agency did not know as of
Saturday afternoon if it had succeeded.
The captain
of the ship communicated with his family Saturday morning, however, and
reported that he and the ship were safe.
The fourth
ship identified by Indonesian authorities has been something of a mystery.
No ship
registered in Taiwan goes by the name of Shin Jyi Chyuu No. 36, and a Taiwanese
ship bearing a similar name, the Shin Jyi Chun No. 33, reported that it was
sailing in international waters near Palau and was not in Indonesian waters.
Indonesia
has been cracking down on foreign vessels operating illegally in its waters,
sinking three Vietnamese fishing boats and seizing 22 Chinese vessels recently
to stem the illegal fishing problem.
Authorities
there have threatened to seize or even sink the Taiwanese ships detected Friday
if they are apprehended by Indonesia's Navy.
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