China accuses Taiwan of obscuring the reality behind boat incident
China accuses Taiwan of obscuring the truth following fatal maritime incident near Taiwan’s Kinmen islands
Beijing accused Taiwanese officials on Wednesday of hiding the facts in the wake of a deadly maritime incident, a move that further heightened relations between the two countries. After a Chinese boat capsized on Feb. 14 while being pursued by the Taiwanese coast guard, two Chinese nationals lost their lives in the incident close to Taiwan’s Kinmen islands.
Reportedly, the little boat, which held four people, capsized in Kinmen, an area governed by Taipei that is just five kilometers from the Chinese city of Xiamen. A contentious discussion over Taiwan’s Coast Guard’s activities resulted from the rescue and temporary detention of two crew members during this disaster by Taiwanese authorities.
Beijing’s Taiwan Affairs Office spokeswoman, Zhu Fenglian, has made it known that Taiwan must provide all the information surrounding the event. She took strong offense at Taiwan’s supposed mistreatment of fishermen on the mainland and its “malicious action” of using force to enforce the law while allegedly hiding the facts.
China and Taiwan already have tense ties as a result of Beijing’s claim of sovereignty over the self-governing island, which has contributed to the current situation. Zhu’s remarks highlight how seriously China takes the situation, noting that an apology to the relatives of the departed is among the things expressed.
Conversely, as the island’s president-elect, Lai Ching-te, has said, Taiwan has taken a strong position against law enforcement. Beijing views Lai, the winner of Taiwan’s recent presidential election, as a separatist leader. He has praised the Coast Guard’s efforts and said that more has to be done to stop incidents like this from happening in the future.
Representative Wu Cheng representing the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), which is in power in Taiwan, has also expressed the party’s determination to manage the incident’s fallout responsibly while upholding the rule of law.
Family members of the dead traveled to Kinmen after the incident, while the two survivors have now returned to mainland China. The coast guard’s actions have been upheld by Taiwanese prosecutors in Kinmen, despite a survivor’s allegation that their boat was “rammed” by one of their vessels amid contradictory accounts.
According to an official at a charity that handles cross-strait matters, the family of the dead have refused to have the remains cremated, which adds even more complication to an already delicate situation. The tense ties between China and Taiwan are brought to light by this occurrence, which also raises concerns about law enforcement procedures, marine safety, and the delicate balance of relations across the Taiwan Strait.
Source:AFP
