Japan Release Captains Of Two Chinese Trawlers

(RTTNews) - The saga of conflict continues in seas around southeast Asia. Two Chinese fishermen taken into custody by the Japanese coast guard a day earlier were released without being charged, according to reports. The two men were captains of two fishing trawlers that strayed into Japanese waters. They were taken into custody by coast guards for allegedly illegal fishing in the waters of Sea of Japan. Each of the fishing boats had a crew of 17 including the captain. The crews were all said to be Chinese nationals.

The two captains were returned to their trawlers Saturday evening after negotiations between the two countries.
Wang Fugui and Zheng Wenwu, the two captains of trawlers Lurongyu 1735 and Lurongyu 1736 respectively, were seized for fishing without permission in waters off the coast of Ishikawa Prefecture that falls within an exclusive economic zone of Japan.
The men were not taken to Japanese shore during negotiations and their trawlers too were not taken to any port.
China has had history of entanglement in the seas around countries bordering the South China Sea. Japan had in 2010 detained a Chinese fishing trawler for illegally entering Japanese waters in the East China Sea, which made international headlines. Japan claimed that the captain of the Chinese trawler deliberately rammed two coast guard patrol boats while investigating the intrusion.
What started off as a small issue of straying into the territorial waters of Japan, the incident snowballed to a major diplomatic row with both countries standing firm on issues of national sovereignty.
China flexed its muscles with various demonstrations against Japanese interests in China, which erupted into a political standoff between the two nations. Chinese tourists stayed away from Japan, demonstrators besieged Japanese diplomatic missions and schools, and relations between the two nations once again floundered. Almost threatening, Prime Minister Wen Jiabao even warned Japan stating that "if Japan persists in its mistake, China will take further action and the Japanese side shall bear all the consequences."
Recently, another major issue cropped up when China severed the cables of a survey ship on contract with the government of Vietnam. Earlier, Chinese ships forced and chased away a vessel working for Philippines government, off the Philippine coast.
China has been aggressive lately with claims of its rights over almost all of the South China Sea. As a result, it has ongoing problems with Japan, Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan, all putting up stiff resistance against Chinese claims. Such claims by China have brought to focus the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), which China now seems to be rejecting.

Although China claims its unquestionable sovereignty over the South China Seas, the other five nations bordering the South China Sea too have asserted their legal claims to its waters and lands per the UNCLOS. The other nations in the dispute say China did not have a problem with the UN agreement at that time, but now has changed its stand and does not want honor the UNCLOS treaty.

Nevertheless, there seems to be some development that might ease tensions with China and the ASEAN (Association of South East Asian Nations) having reached a draft agreement to ease tensions in the South China Sea tussle.

Even so, there seems to be yet another rift looming up with Taiwan strongly objecting for being left out of the draft agreement. China does not recognize Taiwan as it considers the island nation to be a part of its own territory.

Taiwan strongly denounced the draft agreement detailing a code of conduct for countries in the South China Sea. The Taiwanese Foreign Ministry has indicted it does not recognize the pact which also covers the Spratlys islands, a chain of islands in the South China Sea, since it was not party to the draft agreement. Taiwan claims a legal right to the Spratlys islands.

Taipei states that a historical, geographical and legal perspective of the islands, its surrounding waters, subsoil and ocean bed would clearly indicate Taiwan has a legal claim over the islands. Nevertheless, Taiwan did clarify being keen on an amicable agreement with nations involved for resolution of disputes pertaining to the South China Sea.

But for now, it seems China's only claim to the sea is the name appended to the body of water -- the South China Sea.

by RTT Staff Writer

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