Taiwan hails Phl decision to charge Coast Guard men

MANILA, Philippines - With homicide charges set against Philippine Coast Guard personnel for the death of a fisherman last year, Taiwan said its four “demands” have been met and satisfied.

Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) commended the Philippines’ Department of Justice (DOJ) on its decision on Tuesday to charge the Coast Guard personnel involved in the death of the Taiwanese fisherman.

Taiwan said they would continue to monitor the judicial proceedings in the case.

A special prosecution panel of the DOJ recommended the filing of homicide charges against the eight Coast Guard personnel involved in the shooting of a Taiwanese fisherman on May 9, 2013.

The eight have been charged with homicide, two of whom are also indicted for obstruction of justice.

“The Republic of China (ROC) government commends the special panel’s resolution, announced March 18, as a victory for justice. The decision is in line with a report released Aug. 7, 2013, by the Philippine National Bureau of Investigation finding that the attack on ROC fishing boat Guang Da Xing No. 28, which resulted in the death of fisherman Hong Shi-cheng, was not carried out in self-defense, and its recommendation that those involved be prosecuted for homicide and obstruction of justice,” Taiwan’s Foreign Ministry said.

The MOFA said Guang Da Xing No. 28 was fired upon by personnel on a Philippine government vessel in the overlapping exclusive economic zones of the ROC and the Philippines.

“The ROC government subsequently made four demands of the Philippine government, calling for a formal apology, compensation, an expeditious investigation followed by prosecution of the perpetrators, and the speedy arrangement of negotiations on fishery matters,” the MOFA said.

‘Their morale is high’

The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), on the other hand, is unfazed by the filing of homicide charges against Coast Guard personnel involved in the death of a Taiwanese fisherman.

Armed Forces Northern Luzon Command (NOLCOM) chief Lt. Gen. Gregorio Catapang said the development would not discourage his troops from assisting the PCG in enforcing maritime laws.

Soldiers, Catapang stressed, would continue to support efforts to guard the country’s waters against poachers.

“Our troops were indoctrinated regarding rules of engagement. We’ve learned that it would be better to send the Philippine Coast Guard to implement maritime or fisheries laws,” Catapang said.

“But we can be in support to the Philippine Coast Guard if need be,” he added.

Catapang noted that securing the Philippine waters is part of the mandate of the armed forces.

When asked about the morale of his troops, whose area of responsibility includes the spot where the fatal shooting took place, Catapang said: “Their morale is high.”

Justice Secretary Leila de Lima said the Coast Guard has no reason to be demoralized following the filing of the charges against the PCG personnel involved in the shooting.

De Lima said the homicide case approved by her department against eight PCG men is “unique” and should not taint the image of the Philippine Coast Guard.

“The dispositions in our resolution of the charges are pro hac vice (for this turn) in nature,” she said.

She explained the findings of the investigating panel do not speak of the entire PCG as an institution but only covered a “very peculiar set of facts” involving only a few coast guard men.

Citing a key point in the resolution, De Lima said the DOJ does not intend to weaken the resolve of the PCG “who are doing their mighty best, despite limited resources, to carry on and strictly enforce Philippine criminal laws within Philippine territory in accordance with established rules of engagement.”

The involved PCG personnel reportedly saw a fishing vessel with what seemed to be Chinese characters near Balintang Island in the northern part of the country at around 10 a.m.

A sea chase that lasted for about an hour reportedly ensued, with the 30-meter long PCG ship MCS 3001 running after the fleeing Taiwanese fishing vessel.

The PCG claimed the Taiwanese vessel had tried to ram their vessel, forcing them to fire warning shots. The incident resulted in the death of the 65-year old Taiwanese fisherman.

On Tuesday, the justice department said it has found probable cause to file homicide charges against eight PCG officers and personnel involved in the shooting incident.

Facing homicide raps are commanding officer Arnold Enriquez de la Cruz, Seamen 1st Class Edrando Aguila, Mhelvin Bendo II, Andy Golfo, Sunny Masangcay and Henry Solomon; SN2 Nicky Aurello; and Petty Officer 2 Richard Fernandez Corpuz.

A DOJ panel dismissed their claim that they were forced to shoot at the Taiwanese fishing boat after it tried to ram their vessel.

The panel said the respondents “all acted in unison with the common purpose of firing” at the Taiwanese fishing boat to force it to submit to inspection.

It also did not find evidence indicating that the Taiwanese boat posed imminent danger to the Coast Guard men.

The justice department panel also maintained that the respondents were not authorized to use deadly force on a potentially hostile vessel.

De Lima said that the prosecution of De la Cruz and his seven men “should not be construed as carte blanche (unrestricted authority) for Taiwanese fishermen to illegally poach within the Philippines’ territorial waters with impunity.”

The Philippines and Taiwan had completed parallel, cooperative investigations into the incident at the end of May last year. The NBI report was approved by President Aquino, who also sent Amadeo Perez Jr., chairman of the Manila Economic and Cultural Office (MECO), to Taiwan on Aug. 8 to apologize to the ROC government and the family of the victim, and reach an agreement with the family on compensation. – Alexis Romero, Edu Punay