Japan arrests another Chinese fishing boat skipper

Japan Coast Guard seems to be getting strict in these boundary incursions by Chinese fishermen. I wonder how many more are going to be caught before the year ends.

Korea has become more and more aggressive in dealing with flagrant violations by Chinese fishermen. Russia can be nasty if you try to fish without permission north of the Korean peninsula.

Is this driving Chinese captains over to 'softer' targets like Japan?

In any other country in the world, shoots first and asks questions later.

are these chinese fishermen really fishermen, or chinese government agents on some mission to provoke japan? are they really fishermen that are being paid by chinese government for this provocation, and return as heroes when released? or are they just poor fishermen trying to get rich quick?

These incidents were occurring in the East China Sea, but this time it's the Pacific Ocean!

Take these chinese fishermen to tsukuji market show them what can be had inside japans borders, offer them the produce at market rates, if they decline then the next time they are caught in japanese territorial waters their boat is sunk without question and no tsukuji tours for the captain.

According to the Japanese, these fishermen are causing bigger problems to Japan than corruption in Olympus and Tepco. Interesting...

I'm also quite sure these boats are equipped with equipment for navigation, so what are they doing way out there? And, what exactly are these fishermen doing while being chased before stopping? The other boat that was caught earlier ran for 6 hours before stopping, and this one, a full hour. I'm quite sure they're on the radio or even sattelite phones reporting what to whom?

Is this driving Chinese captains over to 'softer' targets like Japan?

or poor visibility due to thick fog (!)

Arrest the scurvy scalawags!

According to the Japanese, these fishermen are causing bigger problems to Japan than corruption in Olympus and Tepco. Interesting...

Domestic issues should be a priority. Japan cannot afford to risk military confrontation with China.

Take these chinese fishermen to tsukuji market show them what can be had inside japans borders, offer them the produce at market rates, if they decline then the next time they are caught in japanese territorial waters their boat is sunk without question and no tsukuji tours for the captain.

@ExportExpert. I don't think it is wise to act tough against China. Japan should peacefully negotiate and settle the territorial disputes with China once and for all. Aren't Japanese suppose to be pacifists?

Aren't Japanese suppose to be pacifists?

How about the chinese aren't they pacifists too? Or all the Buddhism/Taoism/etc is just so much shtick?

Back on topic please.

poor visibility due to thick fog

Somehow, the GPS always malfunctions but the fishfinder never does.

Keelhaul and send back.

are these chinese fishermen really fishermen, or chinese government agents on some mission to provoke japan? are they really fishermen that are being paid by chinese government for this provocation, and return as heroes when released?

exactly. Most eill dismiss this as conspiracy etc. but if you read between the lines, I think you will see that this, at least in a large part is what the Chinese are trying to do. They know Japan will most likely never get any more aggressive than slapping a fine or two down on the boat caps. and if there WERE some escalation the Chinese can spin it as an act of aggression in "disputed" waters and engage in more violent actions against the Japanese while making the false claim of "self defense" or some other such rubbish. The Chinese know EXACTLY what they are doing here and are just waiting for the moment that a confrontation(accident or otherwise) leads to the loss of life for one of the hundreds of Chinese ships that get busted. Wars have been started from smaller things..

A typically underhanded attempt fraught with deciet and guile to lure the Japanese into becoming the bad guys as usual.

but really, does anyone expect anything else from China?

does anyone expect anything else from China?

True ... China has been a bully in Southeast Asia for some time now. Enforcing what they want, and forcefully taking what they want as well.

To be fair, they also sometimes give ... crumbs -- with lots of conditions.

I have been thinking ... what if the main purpose of the "chase" is to conveniently lose some equipment they are actually using, or to send the data they have collected before deleting, so that no evidence can be found.

@crustpunker and Elvensilvan. Now your views are just plain one-sided. You should try to get to know China a little better. The world is doing alot of business and cooperation with China these days. There are hundreds of thousands of foreigners including Americans who live, work, or study in China as well as settling a family there in some cases. Your biased descriptions of China's behavior is not shared by everyone. A war with Japan over some fishing incidents is unlikely and would not be in China's best interests while China is focused on development.

but really, does anyone expect anything else from China?

Japan seems to be expecting something beyond bullying...and willing to buy Chinese Bonds

nadakandamanda: "Korea has become more and more aggressive in dealing with flagrant violations by Chinese fishermen. Russia can be nasty if you try to fish without permission north of the Korean peninsula. Is this driving Chinese captains over to 'softer' targets like Japan?"

The difference with SKorea and Chinese incursions is that in the last two cases there have been deaths. The former resulted in the death of a couple of Chinese fishermen, I believe, so the remaining fishermen who quickly let off the hook (so to speak). In the case of the latter a Chinese fisherman stabbed a SK coast guard officer to death and wounded another. For this there is no way they would go softly on the Chinese fishermen, though I can't say what prompts either side to violence in cases with SKorea.

As such it's hard to compare with the cases in Japan, because there is little or no violence involved, so there's not much they can do besides slap them on the wrists and let them go. In the 2010 case there is also the fact that they were in 'disputed' waters, which added pressure on Japan from Beijing to let the men go.

Anyway, it's good to see the coast guard getting stricter when these incidents take place in undisputed waters. Oh, and yes, I agree Russia can also be nasty (firing off the bows of ships and then taking them in and holding them for a month or so).

I didn't realize it was an annual catch-and-release program

These Chinese fishermen are actually pirates. They should be treated as such.

Kabukilover, poachers, surely, but pirates?

Why does the coast guard ship in this picture look like the Love Boat? :P

As long as Japan maintains its joint defense agreement allowing for U.S. forces in the country, the Japanese will be able to keep some semblance of defense in place for their borders and EEZs. Without the U.S., Japan could be ripe for the picking by its more powerful and aggressive neighbors.

As it is, Japan and China are already locked in a mini-Cold War of their own concerning control of vast areas of ocean and what lies beneath the sea floor. It will certainly make for some interesting times for decades to come.

AH yes, China, the land of peace and love?? Love of ?? $$$?? Fish and other products from other countries territorial waters??

Somehow, the GPS always malfunctions but the fishfinder never does...

yeah, that's a good one. Makes you wonder where a Chinese missile might land...

I'm not sure the Chinese government is involved in these fishing vessels. The JDF isn't finding any survellence gear on board. I think the fishermen are just, um, "lost."

Elbuda: "Love of ?? $$$?? Fish and other products from other countries territorial waters??"

You're seriously posting this as some kind of argument giving Japan's 'scientific research' (for which they send the coast guard WAY off-coast)?

AH yes, China, the land of peace and love?? Love of ?? $$$?? Fish and other products from other countries territorial waters??

@Elbuda Mexicano. Japan is also the land of love of $$$. What do you think TEPCO and other big companies are? I think China will be better off and not have to suffer from radioactive food and water like Japan.

smithinjapanDec. 23, 2011 - 02:30AM JST "Elbuda: "Love of ?? $$$?? Fish and other products from other countries territorial waters??" You're seriously posting this as some kind of argument giving Japan's 'scientific research' (for which they send the >coast guard WAY off-coast)?

You STILL don't undrstand that "Coast Guard" doesn't mean they can't leave the coast? Are you in the 5th grade or what? Not to mention that research whaling isn't being conducted in ANYBODY's WATERS, it;s being done in international waters so what is the point of your comparison?

OssanAmericaDec. 24, 2011 - 05:30AM JST. You STILL don't undrstand that "Coast Guard" doesn't mean they can't leave the coast? Are you in the 5th grade or what? Not to mention that research whaling isn't being conducted in ANYBODY's WATERS, it;s being done in international waters so what is the point of your comparison?

What research at the supermarket? Japan should not be trying to impose it’s will on other cultures, namely those around the Southern Saunctary who completely oppose this pillaging of their surrounding oceans. All the arguements about killing intelligent creatures is immaterial, they should hunt in their own waters, and if the problem is there are no whales around Japan, then there’s no traditional hunting grounds left..they’ve killed them all, and demonstrates they problem they are causing. It doesn’t mean they get to kill and eat everyone elses whales.

Patrick HattmanDec. 23, 2011 - 01:30AM JST. As it is, Japan and China are already locked in a mini-Cold War of their own concerning control of vast areas of ocean and what lies beneath the sea floor. It will certainly make for some interesting times for decades to come.

Japan really can't do much if U.S. has no presence. At the present, China’s economic interest in Africa are working very well as a result of instability in the region. Destabilisation as a tool of control has always worked for colonial powers. Engineered chaos can then be managed by a strong military presence in the region. In effect, what we are witnessing here is the dawn of a New Cold War between the US-EURO powers and China. This new cold war will feature many of the same elements of the long and protracted US-USSR face-off we saw in the second half of the 20th century. It will take place off shore, in places like Africa, South America, Central Asia and through old flashpoints like Korea and the Middle East. This will be America's new military playground. What makes this new cold war much deeper and more subtle than the previous one, is that it will not be cloaked in a popular ideology like ‘Capitalism vs Communism’. This new war centers around one single issue which is natural resources.

sfjp330Dec. 24, 2011 - 06:11AM JST What research at the supermarket? Japan should not be trying to impose it’s will on other cultures, namely those >around the Southern Saunctary who completely oppose this pillaging of their surrounding oceans. All the >arguements about killing intelligent creatures is immaterial, they should hunt in their own waters, and if the >problem is there are no whales around Japan, then there’s no traditional hunting grounds left..they’ve killed them >all, and demonstrates they problem they are causing. It doesn’t mean they get to kill and eat everyone elses whales.

This article isn't about whaling. No country is calling Japan's rsearch whaling as "poaching in their territorial waters". This article is about Chinese fishjing vessels poahing in Japanese territorial waters.

The more strict Japan becomes when protecting their waters, then hopefully the Chinese fishing skippers will get the message. They should be fined to the fullest extent of the law to deter any others, although , surely they can't catch all of them. Could it be possible some of these boats are carrying sensors for the PLA Navy? I'm sure this is all part of the great "chess" game. Ganbare Japan! Protect your interest in your part of the swimming pool.