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Teacher Lin, Leo S.F. was interviewed by Thought Tank
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2024/3/14
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Teacher Lin, Leo S.F. was interviewed by Thought Tank: The Golden Gate speedboat incident made the law enforcement of sea patrol more difficult.
The Golden Gate speedboat incident made it more difficult to enforce the law on sea patrol.
Lin, Leo S.F. read by 381 people on March 14th, 2024.
Last month, a speedboat accident in the Golden Gate waters killed two China fishermen, which aroused widespread concern and discussion in the society. This incident is really regrettable, but it also caused political controversy and touched the subtle changes in cross-strait relations.
From the practical point of view, Jinmen is close to the mouth of Jiulong River in southeast Fujian, and the surrounding waters are rich in fishery resources. For example, yellow croaker is regarded as "local gold" in the mainland market, which has great economic benefits, and because of its low fishing operation cost, many "family fishing boats" (self-employed small speedboats) have been attracted to cross the border in the waters around Jinmen. Faced with this situation, China's coast guard has encountered many difficulties in maritime law enforcement service for a long time. Considering the domestic situation and the changes in cross-strait relations, although this accident has become a controversial event, it has now entered the internal investigation and foreign consultation. The author thinks that we should return to the actual law enforcement level at this time and jointly support the coast guard to strictly enforce the law against illegal cases in order to safeguard China's maritime rights and interests and people's rights and interests.
Law enforcement action and duty risk
First of all, the premise of this incident is that the identity of the "three noes" fishing boat involved is unknown, and it is a cross-border ship, which may be seriously suspected of violating the law. The so-called "three no-ships" (no ship name, no ship certificate, no port of registry) are concerned by both sides of the strait. From time to time, they intrude into the sea area and evade our law enforcement by refusing inspection and sneaking around, which seriously undermines the maritime order. Therefore, it is not only necessary for the Coast Guard to take law enforcement action, but also a due response to China's maritime sovereignty.
Secondly, in the situation of tense cross-strait relations, the Coast Guard has actively banned illegal vessels in order to maintain marine order and protect the interests of domestic fishermen, and its determination to enforce the law is worthy of recognition. At present, the Kinmen sea area is not only an important fishing area for fishermen in China, but also a frequent area for people who love sea fishing. We should have taken measures to prevent or ban mainland fishing boats from crossing the border and fishing in the sea area for many years, which has affected the rights and interests of our people. However, law enforcement actions may lead to conflicts, accidents and dangers, and it is very likely to cause personal safety of sea patrol personnel. For example, on March 16, 2020, the Sea Guard was hit by a fishing boat from China that crossed the border in Kinmen waters, causing damage to the speedboat of the Sea Guard. (According to the video of the collision with the ship of the Sea Guard widely transmitted on the Internet, this incident is the case.).
Theoretical viewpoint of law enforcement
From the theoretical point of view of police law enforcement, we are worried about the subsequent development of this incident. For example, the classic Broken Windows Theory pointed out that obvious signs of disorder and neglect will further lead to the increase of crimes. If this incident fails to reach a solution, it will damage the prestige of sea patrol law enforcement and continue to break the rights and interests of fishermen in China, which will only lead to more law enforcement problems in the future.
We should also pay attention to whether there will be The Ferguson Effect in the future. This concept was first put forward in Ferguson, Missouri in 2014 after Michael Brown, a black resident, was shot dead by the police. This effect pointed out that distrust and hostility towards law enforcement from all walks of life reduced proactive policing of law enforcement, and law enforcement officers might be unwilling to actively enforce the law for fear of being accused or facing public criticism, which led to an increase in the crime rate.
Under the circumstance that the media has magnified this incident, if all walks of life continue to criticize the law enforcement action of sea patrol from the perspective of pan-politicization, it may further trigger the "broken window effect" and "Ferguson effect". Faced with the distrust and hostility of the people on both sides of the strait to sea patrol law enforcement, sea patrol law enforcement officers will become more conservative and hesitant in both discretionary power and use of force if they weigh the pressure of public trial and media public opinion. This situation is likely to cause a serious blow to the morale of China's sea patrol personnel, the effectiveness of law enforcement in sea areas and the protection of fishermen's rights and interests, and will become the biggest law enforcement challenge in the future.
Refer to foreign accident investigation experience
For accident investigation, relevant departments may refer to foreign systems and practical experience. Taking the United States as an example, the procedures and regulations stipulated in Chapter 63 of Shipping, Book 46 of the United States Code, Including investigating the incident, determining liability, imposing penalties, and ensuring transparency of the investigation process through public investigations and congressional notifications.
According to Article 6301 of Maritime Accident Investigation, the US Coast Guard, USCG) has formulated maritime safety investigation specifications, provided policy guidance and implementation procedures. Among them, the 650-page Volume V: Investigations and Enforcement, published in 2008, not only provides guidelines for the investigation of maritime accidents in line with domestic laws and international treaties in the United States, but also provides remedial law enforcement action for the team to achieve the purpose of law enforcement. The relevant policy guidelines of the United States may be used as reference materials for the investigation of maritime accidents in China.
In addition, the author served as the police liaison officer in the representative office in the United States, and served as the contact window between China and the US Coast Guard, responsible for promoting the exchanges between Taiwan and the United States. Among them, it helps Chinese coast guard officers to go to USCG Training Center Yorktown in Virginia to receive Incident Commander Training. After the author left office, Taiwan and the United States signed a Memorandum of Understanding on the Establishment of a Sea Patrol Working Group on March 25, 2021, as a platform for exchanges and cooperation in sea patrol. Through these exchange mechanisms, China can also learn from the relevant practical experience and practices of the United States in the investigation of similar accidents.
Suggestions and prospects
There are indeed some unsatisfactory aspects in the law enforcement process of the Coast Guard, which need to be reflected and improved urgently. However, at present, it has entered the judicial investigation procedure to further clarify the responsibility of the relevant personnel. We should believe in the independence, objectivity and impartiality of the judiciary and wait for the announcement of the investigation results.
The author suggests that there are three ways to cure this incident: in terms of implementation, the coast guard department can actively and timely announce the law enforcement operation process, notification and evidence collection to the public; In terms of strategy, we will continue to strengthen the cooperation and criminal investigation between sea patrol and marine police in cross-strait maritime law enforcement, and re-examine the crisis handling and risk management and control mechanism of cross-strait maritime law enforcement issues; On the institutional side, we seek to establish a cross-strait dialogue mechanism and cooperation and exchange channels in a rational and reciprocal way, so that the two sides can establish institutional measures through goodwill and active consultation, and at the same time urge the mainland to restrict its fishing boats (people) from entering our waters.
Finally, we call on all sectors of society to affirm the determination and hard work of grassroots sea patrol law enforcement personnel in enforcing the law strictly, and pay more attention to the observations and voices of Chinese fishermen on this incident, support the law enforcement actions of the sea patrol agency together, and jointly safeguard the marine order and defend the rights and interests of fishermen. Ocean issues are related to the long-term development of the country and the safety of people's livelihood, and need the joint efforts and cooperation of the public. Only by unswervingly defending China's maritime rights and interests can we guarantee the long-term stability of the country and maintain regional peace and stability. We expect the Coast Guard to continue to play its due role and fulfill its mission of protecting maritime security.
The writer is an assistant professor in the Department of Criminal Justice of Ming Chuan University, School of Social Sciences, Ming Chuan University.
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