Taipei [Taiwan], April 28 : A Taiwanese angler from the outlying island of Kinmen held for over a month by China could be freed if he is discharged from the military, a Taiwanese lawmaker said, reported Taiwan News. Hu, 25, along with another man from Kinmen, set off on a fishing trip on March 17, but as fog closed in, they strayed into Chinese waters and were later detained by China's Coast Guard.
While the other man was allowed to return to Kinmen almost a week later, Hu was forced to stay as China accused him of hiding his identity as an active-duty officer, Taiwan News reported .Legislator Chen Yu-jen, who represented Kinmen at the Legislative Yuan, said that a procedure had started for Hu to leave the military. Chen, who was speaking in Beijing, was on a visit as part of a 17-member delegation of opposition Kuomintang (KMT) lawmakers.
As Hu would soon no longer be a member of the Armed Forces, his status would change, defusing the situation, she said .According to Chen, she would also speak to Chinese officials about Hu's fate during her stay in Beijing and communicate with his relatives after her return to Taiwan. For the past 40 days or so, Hu had been held on board a Chinese coast guard ship, but he had been able to contact his family, the lawmaker added, reported Taiwan News.
Last week, Taiwan's spokesman Jan Jyh-horng expressed hope that the Chinese authorities would honour their promise and send the two men back as quickly as possible. Apparently, China intends to return the two individuals through non-official channels, he added. Meanwhile, Kinmen County Magistrate Chen Fu-hai also called on China to send the two anglers back home as soon as possible, saying the county government has a fishing boat ready to pick them up any time, as reported by Focus Taiwan.
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