Taipei: Taiwan's Coast Guard Administration (CGA) confirmed Saturday that a Taiwanese fishing vessel was docked at Zhangzhou Port in China's Xiamen City, but the CGA did not comment on reports that the boat had been involved in illegal activities.
According to Focus Taiwan, the Penghu-registered Da Jin Man No. 8 departed Magong Harbor in southern Taiwan at noon on March 23 with seven crew members aboard-three Taiwanese and four Indonesians. Shortly after departing, the vessel turned off its automatic identification system (AIS) and did not reactivate it until around 2 a.m. on March 25. At that time, the boat was about 50 nautical miles northwest of Penghu in international waters, 13 nautical miles west of the Taiwan Strait median line, sailing towards Xiamen City in China.
The CGA issued the news release following a report by the Liberty Times on Friday, stating that the Taiwanese boat had suddenly appeared off the coast of Xiamen and was escorted into Zhangzhou Port by a China Coast Guard ship. Citing sources in China, the news report suggested that the Da Jin Man No. 8 might have been involved in the illegal sale of fuel to Chinese fishing vessels and was intercepted at sea by the Chinese Coast Guard.
In its news release on Saturday, the CGA did not address these allegations, only mentioning that the boat owner and relatives of the crew members had no information about the situation. The CGA stated that it will continue to track the movements of the Taiwanese vessel and provide any necessary assistance. They also reminded Taiwanese boats to keep their AIS switched on for safety purposes and to call the "118" hotline immediately in case of emergencies at sea for a prompt response from Taiwan's Coast Guard.
Additionally, Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council reported that information from the CGA indicated that the vessel was impounded by Chinese authorities but confirmed that its crew members were safe.