2024 Kinmen Chinese motorboat capsizing incident explained

2024 Kinmen Chinese motorboat capsizing incident
Location:0.5 nmi east of Beiding Island, Kinmen, Fuchien Province, ROC
Cause:Boat chase of a motorboat from Quanzhou, PRC fleeing a pullover by the Taiwanese Coast Guard while trespassing in the restricted waters of Kinmen
Participants:
Reported Deaths:2

The 2024 Kinmen Chinese motorboat capsizing incident, also called the 2/14 Kinmen Incident, took place on 14 February 2024, when a boat of the 9th Brigade of the Taiwanese Coast Guard Administration (CGA) collided with a Chinese motorboat which was trespassing and illegally fishing in the waters of Kinmen, Fuchien Province, Taiwan (ROC). All four crew members of the Chinese motorboat were thrown into the water, two of whom later died.

Event

The 9th Brigade of the Coast Guard Administration of Taiwan (CGA) collided with a Chinese motorboat on 14 February 2024.[1] Both Taiwan's CGA and the Mainland Affairs Council stated that the boat was unmarked and unregistered.[2] [3] All four crew members of the Chinese motorboat were thrown into the water, two of whom later died.[4] [5]

The Taiwan Coast Guard Administration (CGA) first stated that the Fujian motorboat capsized due to refusing inspection and "zigzagging", without mentioning a collision.[6]

However, CGA later changed its statement on 20 February, stating that there were multiple "contacts" between the two vessels during the high-speed interception. Mainland Chinese crew members who returned to Fujian also confirmed that the coast guard's speedboat directly collided with the fishing boat.[7] [8]

Aftermath

The two surviving crew members were detained in Kinmen,[9] and subsequently deported.[10] [11] The incident led to increased tensions between China and Taiwan, as China disputed the CGA's justification for the chase and the concept of restricted waters.[12] [13] Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council reiterated that the Act Governing Relations between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area permitted Taiwanese authorities to take any defensive action necessary if a Chinese vessel enters any restricted or prohibited waters.[14]

The China Coast Guard increased patrols in the area following the incident.[15] On 19 February, China Coast Guard officials boarded a Taiwanese cruise ship near Kinmen for half an hour, which drew criticism from Taiwanese authorities.[16] [17]

At the end of February 2024, a conspiracy theory was discussed on Twitter that one of the survivors of the capsizing incident was not an ordinary fisherman, but a first-class sergeant in the Navy Submarine Force of the South Sea Fleet of the PLA named Chen Zujun (陳祖軍).[18]

Discussions about the incident were delayed due to the effects of Typhoon Gaemi.[19] An agreement was reached in late July 2024,[20] in which the remains of the fatalities were to be repatriated and compensation given to families of the victims. On 30 July, CGA commander Chang Chung-lung (張忠龍) apologised to the victims' families "for the suffering [they have] endured" and for failing to record evidence "in this case".[21]

The captain and helmsman of the CGA vessel were investigated by the Kinmen District Prosecutors' Office, which declined to indict the pair.[22]

Reactions

Shen Ming-shih (沈明室), a research fellow at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research, compared the Chinese denial of restricted and prohibited waters to previous statements rejecting the tacitly understood Davis line of the Taiwan Strait. Yu Tsung-chi (余宗基), the former dean of Fu Hsing Kang College of the National Defense University, observed that rejection of restricted and prohibited waters by China showed a lack of respect toward Taiwan, and also argued that previous seizures or attempts to drive away Chinese vessels could not have happened if both sides did not understand the concept of restricted and prohibited waters.[23] Taiwanese premier Chen Chien-jen ugred both Taiwan and China to approach the waters around Kinmen and Xiamen with rationality and equality in mind.[24] United States National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan commented that the US was "against any kind of action, by any party, that undermines [...] peace and stability" across the Taiwan Strait. Matthew Miller, spokesperson for the United States Department of State, stated that the United States was closely monitoring Chinese actions, and "urge[d] restraint and no unilateral change to the status quo" in the Strait.[25]

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. News: 戴志揚 . 2024-02-16 . 陸「三無快艇」翻覆2死！橫行金馬黑歷史曝光 漁民要海巡硬起來 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240225091253/https://www.chinatimes.com/realtimenews/20240216001583-260402 . 2024-02-25 . 2024-02-25 . China Times.
  2. News: Blanchard . Ben . Gopalakris . Raju . China to send coast guard ships as tensions rise over Taiwanese islands . 31 July 2024 . Reuters . 17 February 2024.
  3. News: Deng . Shawn . Chang . Wayne . Two Chinese fishermen drown during pursuit by Taiwan coast guard . 31 July 2024 . CNN.com . 14 February 2024.
  4. News: Chang . Yi-lian . Chen . Christie . 2 dead after Chinese speedboat capsizes in Kinmen waters . 14 February 2024 . 30 July 2024.
  5. News: Wang . Flor . Lee . Ya-wen . Lai . Yu-chen . Death of 2 Chinese men off Kinmen regrettable: Taiwan agency . 30 July 2024 . 15 February 2024.
  6. Web site: 金門海域陸快艇翻覆兩死！海巡坦承多次碰撞翻覆. 21 February 2024. SET News.
  7. Web site: 台改称海巡队曾与闽渔船碰撞. 22 February 2024. std.stheadline.com.
  8. News: Chang . I-lien . Hung . Hsueh-kuang . Huang . Li-yun . Lin . Chiao-lien . Wu . Kuan-hsien . CGA confirms Kinmen capsizing incident caused by patrol boat collision . 30 July 2024 . Central News Agency . 22 February 2024.
  9. Web site: 2024-02-19 . Chinese Coast Guard Boarded Taiwan Ship After Deadly Boat Incident . 2024-02-28 . Voice of America . en . Agence France-Presse.
  10. News: Chiang . Yi-lien . Tsai . Meng-yu . Chang . Chi . Mazzetta . Matthew . Relatives of Chinese men who died in Coast Guard chase arrive in Kinmen . 30 July 2024 . 22 February 2024 . Family members of two Chinese men who died in a boat accident as they fled Taiwan's Coast Guard arrived in Kinmen to hold funeral rituals for them Tuesday, while the other two men on the boat were scheduled to be deported to China..
  11. News: Hung . Hsiuh-kuang . Chang . Yi-liang . Lee . Hsin-Yin . CGA fails to clarify if collision caused fatal capsizing . 30 July 2024 . Central News Agency . 21 February 2024. According to prosecutors, the two survivors, who were deported back to China Tuesday, said they had no objection to the law enforcement procedures of the Coast Guard..
  12. News: Davidson . Helen . 2024-02-20 . China coast guard boards Taiwan tourist boat in escalation of tensions . 2024-02-28 . The Guardian . en-GB . 0261-3077.
  13. Web site: Wu . Huizhong . 2024-02-18 . China's coast guard to ramp up patrols near Taiwan's Kinmen archipelago after 2 fishermen drown . 2024-02-28 . Associated Press . en.
  14. News: Hung . Hsueh-kuang . Tang . Pei-chun . Lee . Hsin-Yin . Taiwan rejects China's criticisms following deadly Kinmen boat chase . 30 July 2024 . 18 February 2024.
  15. News: Tang . Pei-chun . Kao . Evelyn . After incident, Chinese boats patrol waters near Taiwan-held Kinmen . 30 July 2024 . Central News Agency . 19 February 2024.
  16. News: Tsai . Meng-yu . Yu . Hsiao-han . Ko . Lin . Taiwan vessel returns to Kinmen after being boarded by Chinese coast guard . 30 July 2024 . Central News Agency . 19 February 2024.
  17. Web site: 2024-02-20 . Chinese Coast Guard boards Taiwan tourist boat, triggers panic . 2024-02-28 . Al Jazeera . en.
  18. Web site: 他們隸屬南海戰區? 金廈翻船事件生還者遭起底 疑解放軍扮福建漁民. 2024-02-26. Yahoo News. zh-Hant-TW. 2024-02-29.
  19. News: Lai . Sunny . Taiwan-China discussions on speedboat incident rescheduled to Tuesday . 30 July 2024 . Central News Agency . 28 July 2024.
  20. News: Hung . Hseuh-kuang . Lee . Hsin-Yin . Taiwan, China reach settlement terms over Kinmen speedboat incident . 30 July 2024 . 30 July 2024.
  21. News: Ng . Kelly . Taiwan and China reach deal over fishermen's deaths . 30 July 2024 . BBC . 30 July 2024.
  22. News: Hung . Hsueh-kuang . Chang . I-lien . Wu . Kuan-hsien . Chao . Yen-hsiang . Coast Guard officers involved in Kinmen capsizing incident not charged . 17 August 2024 . Central News Agency . 16 August 2024. Republished as: News: Officers involved in Kinmen capsizing not charged . 18 August 2024 . Taipei Times . 17 August 2024.
  23. News: Lee . Ya-wen . Kao . Evelyn . China using 'gray zone' tactics after deadly Kinmen boat case: Experts . 30 July 2024 . Central News Agency . 18 February 2024.
  24. News: Lin . Ching-yin . Wang . Yang-yu . Lee . Hsin-Yin . Premier urges reciprocal cooperation amid cross-strait maritime dispute . 30 July 2024 . Central News Agency . 20 February 2022.
  25. News: Chiang . Chin-yeh . Lee . Hsin-Yin . U.S. calls for peace amid Taiwan-China maritime dispute . 30 July 2024 . Central News Agency . 21 February 2024.

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