ID :
73140
Fri, 07/31/2009 - 12:59
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://www.oananews.org//node/73140
The shortlink copeid
(LEAD) No word from N. Korea yet about fate of seized S. Korean fishermen
(ATTN: RECASTS headline, REPLACES quotes with official briefing, background)
By Kim Hyun
SEOUL, July 31 (Yonhap) -- North Korea said Friday it does not yet have any
information to give concerning four South Korean fishermen being held after their
boat strayed north of the maritime border, Seoul officials said.
The 29-ton squid-fishing boat was towed by a North Korean patrol vessel to a port
on the country's east coast Thursday morning. The North later said a pertinent
organization was investigating the crew, as South Korea pressed for their
immediate release.
In a regular communication by phone early Friday, South Korea "asked if they have
learned anything new about the situation, and the North Korean side said they
have not," Unification Ministry spokesman Chun Hae-sung said in a briefing.
Seoul pressed for more information, with the North Korean side saying it will
keep South Korea informed of any results, Chun added.
The "800 Yeonanho" sailed 13km north of the Northern Limit Line, a de-facto
inter-Korean maritime border in the East Sea, Seoul officials said. The boat
either did not have a satellite navigation device or it had malfunctioned, they
said.
On the same day, a North Korean fishing boat ventured 12.9km into South Korean
waters off the west coast, with Seoul allowing a North Korean patrol boat to
cross the borderline and tow it back home.
Fishing boats often stray across the other side of the border and are routinely
released on humanitarian grounds. But the latest case raised deep concern in
Seoul, occurring at a time when inter-Korean political relations have hit their
lowest level in a decade.
Fears deepened that North Korea may try to use the boat seizure to increase
pressure on the conservative Lee Myung-bak government, as it has done over the
case of a worker detained at a joint industrial park in the North. The South
Korean worker, identified only by his family name Yu, has been detained
incommunicado since March on accusations of insulting the North's political
system.
Thursday's seizure was the first such case among fishermen since Lee took office
last year.
So far this year, two North Korean boats have accidentally entered South Korean
territory, and both were promptly released.
hkim@yna.co.kr
(END)
By Kim Hyun
SEOUL, July 31 (Yonhap) -- North Korea said Friday it does not yet have any
information to give concerning four South Korean fishermen being held after their
boat strayed north of the maritime border, Seoul officials said.
The 29-ton squid-fishing boat was towed by a North Korean patrol vessel to a port
on the country's east coast Thursday morning. The North later said a pertinent
organization was investigating the crew, as South Korea pressed for their
immediate release.
In a regular communication by phone early Friday, South Korea "asked if they have
learned anything new about the situation, and the North Korean side said they
have not," Unification Ministry spokesman Chun Hae-sung said in a briefing.
Seoul pressed for more information, with the North Korean side saying it will
keep South Korea informed of any results, Chun added.
The "800 Yeonanho" sailed 13km north of the Northern Limit Line, a de-facto
inter-Korean maritime border in the East Sea, Seoul officials said. The boat
either did not have a satellite navigation device or it had malfunctioned, they
said.
On the same day, a North Korean fishing boat ventured 12.9km into South Korean
waters off the west coast, with Seoul allowing a North Korean patrol boat to
cross the borderline and tow it back home.
Fishing boats often stray across the other side of the border and are routinely
released on humanitarian grounds. But the latest case raised deep concern in
Seoul, occurring at a time when inter-Korean political relations have hit their
lowest level in a decade.
Fears deepened that North Korea may try to use the boat seizure to increase
pressure on the conservative Lee Myung-bak government, as it has done over the
case of a worker detained at a joint industrial park in the North. The South
Korean worker, identified only by his family name Yu, has been detained
incommunicado since March on accusations of insulting the North's political
system.
Thursday's seizure was the first such case among fishermen since Lee took office
last year.
So far this year, two North Korean boats have accidentally entered South Korean
territory, and both were promptly released.
hkim@yna.co.kr
(END)
