Chinese mainland urges investigating shooting of fishermen

BEIJING -- A Chinese mainland spokesperson Saturday called on Taiwan to investigate immediately the shooting of mainland fishermen by Taiwan coast guards.

A fishing boat from Guangdong Province was seized Saturday morning by Taiwan coast guards in waters near Penghu County of Taiwan, local authorities said.

Two fishermen were injured by rubber bullets fired from the coast guard ship. They were sent to a hospital in Penghu for medical treatment. The other five are detained.

An Fengshan, spokesperson for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, called on the Taiwan side to respect the fact that fishermen from both sides of the Strait had long been fishing in the area.

He said that Taiwan should respect the rights of mainland fishermen and stop seizing fishing boats for no sound reasons.

An also requested the Taiwan side to seriously handle the case, release the fishermen as soon as possible and prevent the reoccurrence of similar incidents in the future.