The Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits warned the Taiwan authorities on Friday to stop any actions threatening the lives of fishermen from the mainland.

"Any actions threatening the peace of the Taiwan Straits should be outlawed and penalized. The Taiwan authorities must make up for the losses suffered by the mainland crewmen and pledge to avoid this kind of action from now on," stated the association.

A mainland fishing boat was attacked by an armed Taiwan coastguard patrol vessel, wounding two fishermen, at around 11 am on Wednesday.

The "Minlianyu 2336" fishing boat with 5 crewmen from east China's Fujian Province was preparing to return to Fujian when it was pursued on the Taiwan Straits and fired on.

One officer from the Taiwan patrol vessel had boarded the fishing boat for an inspection.

The patrol vessel approached the fishing boat again and requested the boat to stop for an inspection. Liu Haibin, the boat's captain, refused to stop and sped up the boat to avoid any conflict.

The captain feared that the coastguards, from Matsu, may rob the crew, as had happened on previous occasions. After a 10-minute chase, the patrol vessel fired at the boat's port side and wheelhouse with assault rifles for three minutes, leaving 11 holes in the boat and wounding two crewmen.

(China Daily October 25, 2003)