MANILA - A local court has found eight Philippine Coast Guard personnel guilty in the death of a Taiwanese fisherman in 2013, an incident that strained ties between Manila and Taipei.

They were found guilty of homicide and handed prison sentences of between eight and 14 years.

They were each also ordered to pay 50,000 pesos (S$1,320) as civil indemnity and another 50,000 pesos as moral damages.

The Coast Guard said the eight men aboard a surveillance ship acted in self-defence on May 9, 2013, when they chased and opened fire at the 50-tonne Taiwanese fishing boat Kuang Ta Hsing No. 28 in waters 170 nautical miles off the southernmost tip of Taiwan.

It said the boat tried to ram the Coast Guard vessel, but investigators did not find any sign of a collision.

The 50-minute incident happened in waters where the Philippines and Taiwan have overlapping claims.

The boat had three Taiwanese and an Indonesian on board. One of them, Mr Huang Shih-cheng, 65, the captain's father, was hit by a bullet in the neck and succumbed to the wound later.

The Taiwanese crew insisted that their fishing boat "came under attack" and was fired on without provocation.

Investigators discovered that the boat had at least 59 bullet holes, mostly on the deck, and that the bullets had come from assault rifles. Four bullet holes were near the cabin where the crew tried to hide.

The Philippines' own National Bureau of Investigation released a report suggesting that the Coast Guard men could have violated their own rules of engagement.

The shooting triggered public outrage in Taiwan. Hundreds rallied in front of the Manila Economic and Cultural Office in Taipei and burned the Philippine flag.

Then Taiwanese President Ma Ying-jeou condemned the Philippine government over the attack.

Taipei stopped issuing visas to some 16,000 Filipinos workers seeking jobs in Taiwan.

The Philippines sent a representative and delivered the government's official letter of apology to soothe the strained ties.