President Ma Ying-jeou on Sunday expressed Taiwan’s determination to protect the nation’s fishermen. In a post on his Facebook page, the president said that he hoped that the incoming administration would continue to do the same after taking office on May 20.
In his post, the president wrote about a trip that he made on Friday to Turtle Island, which lies just off the northeastern coast of Taiwan. He said that he visited a small temple on the island to pray to Guanyin – the Goddess of Mercy. He also visited the coast guard stationed on the island to offer encouragement and a small bonus.
President Ma also explained the support that his administration has given Taiwan’s coast guard since he took office in 2008. He recalled an incident in which a Taiwanese fishing boat sank after a Japanese coast guard ship rammed it just one month after he took office. Ma said that following the incident he set aside a budget of NT$20.1 billion (nearly US$620 million) to beef up the nation’s coast guard fleet between 2009 and 2019. He said that budget was for nine 1,000-ton patrol and rescue boats, and for 28 smaller 100-ton boats. Ma said it was the biggest increase to the coast guard fleet in the 16 years since it was established.
The president said the coast guard fleet has doubled since he came into office and is now the fifth largest in Asia.