Bodies of fishermen from February boat accident brought back to mainland – Xinhua

KINMEN, July 30 (Xinhua) — The bodies of two Chinese mainland fishermen who died in a boating accident near Kinmen Island in February were returned to the mainland on Tuesday along with a seized fishing boat.

Prior to their return, the victims’ families reached a consensus with the Taiwanese side in Kinmen after negotiations on the consequences of the incident.

They were accompanied by representatives of a local branch of the Chinese Red Cross Society (RCSC) in the eastern province of Fujian.

The fishing boat was pursued and rammed by a Taiwanese patrol vessel on February 14. In the incident, all four fishermen on board fell into the sea, two of them died.

“More than five months have passed since the incident, and a consensus has finally been reached between the two sides on the consequences,” said Li Zhaohui, a senior adviser to the RCSC branch, expressing hope that the Taiwanese side will actively implement the consensus.

At around 10:20 a.m., a joint memorial service was held at a funeral home in Kinmen, attended by about 100 people, including families and representatives from both sides of the Taiwan Strait.

At the event, Chang Chung-Lung, head of the Taiwanese Coast Guard, said they wanted to apologize for the suffering endured by the families and express their condolences.

After the memorial ceremony, the bodies of the deceased fishermen were returned to Jinjiang by a mainland ship and the confiscated fishing boat was also returned.

Li told reporters in Kinmen that he hoped that relevant parties on the Taiwan side would make the truth about the incident public as soon as possible, reach a fair and honest conclusion after the investigation, and take appropriate measures against those involved in the incident.

“The two sides of the strait are one family, and there is only a narrow stretch of water between Jinjiang and Kinmen, which makes the bond between them even closer,” Li said.

He also called on the relevant authorities in Taiwan to ensure that such incidents, which hurt the feelings of compatriots on both sides of the Strait and affect relations between the two sides of the Strait, are not repeated in the future. ■