MANILA, Philippines (Xinhua)
–On Tuesday, Twelve Chinese fishermen were sentenced by the Palawan regional
court with imprisonment ranging from six up to 12 years because of the
violation (illegal fishing) they made in Tubbataha Protected area in the
southwestern Philippines last year.
Court branch 51 in
Palawan finds the 12 Chinese fishermen guilty
for violation of Tubbataha Protected Area Law of 2009 and convicted them a
prison term of 12 years while for the vessel's captain, Liu Wenjie, and his 11
crews were sentenced to imprisonment from six to 10 years.
Aside from their
imprisonment, the Provincial prosecutor Allen Ross Rodriguez imposed a penalty
of $100,000 for each accused fisherman while their boat was forfeited. All of
them will serve their sentences at the Iwahig Penal Colony located in Palawan,
Rodriguez added.
The Chinese fishermen
ran aground their fishing vessel in Tubbataha Reef, a UNESCO World Heritage
site, off the Western Philippine
province of Palawan in April last year. The Chinese said that their fishing vessel got
lost on the way back to China from Malaysia. However,
the Philippine Coast Guard had said they found hundreds of dead and frozen
pangolins in the Chinese fishing boat. Pangolins are widely hunted in parts of
Asia, including Palawan, for their meat, skin and scales which China uses them
for medicinal purposes and as a delicacy.
In response to the what
happened to their fellow countrymen, China's Foreign Ministry said that the Chinese government always assigns
great importance to the security of its fishermen abroad, while educating and
supervising them on their fishing activities.
