ID :
72914
Thu, 07/30/2009 - 14:50
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://www.oananews.org//node/72914
The shortlink copeid
S. Korean fishing boat seized by N. Korea: officials
By Sam Kim
SEOUL, July 30 (Yonhap) -- A South Korean fishing vessel carrying four crewmembers was seized Thursday morning by a North Korean patrol boat after straying across the East Sea border, officials said.
The 29-ton South Korean boat named "800" was still moving northward, a defense
ministry official in Seoul said, declining to be identified.
"The satellite navigation system on the boat appears to have malfunctioned," the
official said, adding it crossed about seven miles into North Korean waters when
it was seized around 6:30 a.m.
The malfunction was reported by the boat, the official said. He could not say
what other details were discussed or whether messages were still being sent to
the South.
The fishing boat, skippered by a man only identified by his last name, Park,
departed from the port of Geojin on the eastern coast at 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday
and sailed past the Northern Limit Line (NLL), the de facto inter-Korean maritime
border, as far as 20 miles off the port of Jejin, he said.
Geojin is about 150km northeast of Seoul and 15km south of the Demilitarized Zone
that divides the Koreas, which remain technically at war as the 1950-53 Korean
War ended in a truce, without a formal peace treaty.
"We are pushing for its release," the official said, adding South Korean
authorities have sent a message calling on North Korea to immediately return the
ship "for humanitarian reasons."
North Korea has yet to respond, the official said.
The fishing boat, which was operating in the East Sea and mainly fished for
squid, was scheduled to return to port Friday morning, he said.
The incident marks the third time since 2005 that a South Korean fishing boat has
been seized by North Korean authorities. The two previous boats, which also
strayed across the boundary, were released after three and 18 days, respectively.
The NLL was drawn in 1953 by an American commander of U.N. forces that fought on
the South Korean side in the Korean War.
SEOUL, July 30 (Yonhap) -- A South Korean fishing vessel carrying four crewmembers was seized Thursday morning by a North Korean patrol boat after straying across the East Sea border, officials said.
The 29-ton South Korean boat named "800" was still moving northward, a defense
ministry official in Seoul said, declining to be identified.
"The satellite navigation system on the boat appears to have malfunctioned," the
official said, adding it crossed about seven miles into North Korean waters when
it was seized around 6:30 a.m.
The malfunction was reported by the boat, the official said. He could not say
what other details were discussed or whether messages were still being sent to
the South.
The fishing boat, skippered by a man only identified by his last name, Park,
departed from the port of Geojin on the eastern coast at 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday
and sailed past the Northern Limit Line (NLL), the de facto inter-Korean maritime
border, as far as 20 miles off the port of Jejin, he said.
Geojin is about 150km northeast of Seoul and 15km south of the Demilitarized Zone
that divides the Koreas, which remain technically at war as the 1950-53 Korean
War ended in a truce, without a formal peace treaty.
"We are pushing for its release," the official said, adding South Korean
authorities have sent a message calling on North Korea to immediately return the
ship "for humanitarian reasons."
North Korea has yet to respond, the official said.
The fishing boat, which was operating in the East Sea and mainly fished for
squid, was scheduled to return to port Friday morning, he said.
The incident marks the third time since 2005 that a South Korean fishing boat has
been seized by North Korean authorities. The two previous boats, which also
strayed across the boundary, were released after three and 18 days, respectively.
The NLL was drawn in 1953 by an American commander of U.N. forces that fought on
the South Korean side in the Korean War.
