Taiwan ex-soldier held in China returns home
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Kinmen’s Defence Command said in March that Mr Hu had gone fishing while on holiday and lost contact due to heavy fog.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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TAIPEI - A former Taiwanese military officer held in China for nearly five months after he was rescued by the Chinese authorities during a fishing trip finally returned home on Aug 7.
The angler, surnamed Hu, from Taiwan’s outlying Kinmen islands, was found with a friend on March 18 by the coast guard of China’s Fujian province after the engine of their boat failed.
His friend was repatriated to Kinmen a few days later, while Mr Hu – an active member of Taiwan’s military at the time – was held as the Chinese authorities accused him of intentionally concealing his identity.
On Aug 7, Kinmen lawmaker Chen Yu-jen accompanied Mr Hu’s parents and daughter on the first ferry service to the Chinese city of Xiamen – located just 5km away – to bring him back.
Ms Chen live-streamed their return around noon on her Facebook page, showing Mr Hu holding his daughter’s hands as they disembarked from the ferry.
“I miss home, I miss home very much,” he told reporters gathered at the dock. “This was just an accident and it’s good that it can be resolved smoothly.”
Mr Hu’s family had applied for him to be discharged from the military two months after he was detained in China, hoping to speed up his return.
Kinmen’s Defence Command said in March that Mr Hu had gone fishing while on holiday and lost contact due to heavy fog.
It has urged soldiers “to refrain from participating in various risky activities during their vacation” following the incident.
China claims self-ruled Taiwan as part of its territory, and has refused to renounce the use of force to bring the island under its control.
Mr Hu’s case came in the wake of a row between Taipei and Beijing over a fatal boat incident in February.
A Chinese speedboat carrying four people capsized on Feb 14 near Kinmen while Taiwan’s coast guard was pursuing it, leaving two dead.
The coast guard defended its actions
Last week, Taiwan said it had reached an agreement with China to resolve the dispute, and the victims’ families agreed that “the cause of death is drowning”. AFP
