Coast guard from ROK kills Chinese fisherman

A Chinese fisherman was fatally wounded by the coast guard of the Republic of Korea on Friday morning in what was characterized as a crackdown on illegal fishing.

"The skipper was shot in the process of a crackdown. Details on the incident will be announced in the near future, but not today," a coast guard official told Xinhua News Agency by phone.

The official declined to say how many rounds were fired and didn't provide other details.

Beijing quickly urged Seoul to thoroughly investigate the incident and called for stern punishment of those responsible for the captain's death.

"China is shocked by the violent law enforcement of the ROK side, which led to the death of the Chinese fisherman," Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said at a daily news conference.

The ROK Foreign Ministry notified China and offered condolences to the fisherman's family, a Chinese official said.

Song Houmu, the 45-year-old skipper of the 80-ton fishing boat Noyoung 50987, had difficulty breathing after he was wounded, Yonhap news agency reported.

The incident occurred at about 8:30 am local time in waters about 144 kilometers west of Wangdeung Island in Buan County, off the country's North Jeolla province.

Song was airlifted by helicopter and was en route to nearby Mokpo Hankook Hospital in Mokpo when he died after receiving cardiopulmonary resuscitation.

The hospital was quoted as saying Song had been shot from the back to the left side of his abdomen according to a CT image. One lung had filled with blood. A 1.8-cm bullet fragment had lodged inside his body.

The ROK coast guard sent two patrol ships to intercept the boat and questioned the fishermen on board.

During the questioning, four separate Chinese fishing boats held positions on the left and right sides of the Noyoung 50987, resisting violently in protest of the crackdown, according to Yonhap.

During hand-to-hand fighting that ensued between coast guard officers and fishermen, a coast guard officer reportedly fired warning shots with a pistol. One of those shots was thought to have struck the skipper.

It wasn't immediately known whether there were other injuries.

Chinese fishing boats have been going farther afield to feed growing domestic demand for seafood as catches have decreased in waters close to China's shores. The ROK coast guard seized some 220 Chinese ships last year for illegal fishing in the Yellow Sea.

In 2011, an ROK coast guard officer was killed in a clash with Chinese fishermen.

Xinhua-AFP-Reuters-AP

(China Daily 10/11/2014 page11)