Manila apology official; Taiwan welcomes it, finally

TAIPEI/MANILA: A Philippine special envoy visited Taiwan Thursday to offer an "official apology" for the fatal shooting of a Taiwanese fisherman, a move likely to ease severely strained ties.
Amadeo R. Perez, chairman of the Manila Economic and Cultural Office which handles relations in the absence of diplomatic ties, traveled to the small southern port town of Hsiaoliuchiu to meet the family of fisherman Hung Shih-cheng.
Perez, in televised comments, said he wished to convey "the Philippine people's deep regret and apology to the family of Mr. Hung Shih-cheng over this unfortunate loss of life of their beloved one."
"May I respectfully present our official letter of apology to the family of Mr. Hung on behalf of our president and our people," he told Hung's widow, before giving her the letter and shaking her hands.
Tensions between Taipei and Manila rose sharply after the 65-year-old old was shot dead by Filipino coastguards on May 9 in waters near an island in the Philippines' extreme north, which Taiwan also claims as part of its economic zone.
Taiwan rejected earlier apologies by Manila as inadequate and imposed a series of sanctions, including a ban on hiring new Filipino workers, an advisory urging Taiwanese not to visit the Philippines and the suspension of trade and academic exchanges.
But diplomatic tensions eased after Philippine authorities said Wednesday they had recommended homicide charges against eight Filipino coastguards for Hung's death.
Taiwan has welcomed the move as a "constructive response" and Premier Jiang Yi-huah said Thursday that his government would consider lifting the sanctions.
Perez had previously visited Taiwan in May as a "personal representative" of President Benigno Aquino, but his apology was rejected by the Taipei government because he had described Hung's death as "unintended."
The killing caused outrage and protests in Taiwan, with President Ma Ying-jeou describing it as "cold-blooded murder" as Taipei responded with the sanctions and with navy drills.

1 killed as Filipino troops foil new bombing plot
Philippine troops have clashed with militants in what the military says is an operation to foil a plot to bomb cities in the volatile southern Philippines. One soldier was killed in the clash.
Basilan province's army commander, Col. Carlito Galvez, says troops engaged about 70 Abu Sayyaf fighters on Thursday based on information that they were manufacturing bombs to be used in attacks at the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.
The fighting comes on the heels of a two-week bombing spree in the south that left 16 people dead and about 100 wounded.
Officials have blamed a little-known Al-Qaeda-inspired group for a July 26 bombing at a crowded bar that killed eight people, and said the other bombings could be attributed to terrorism or personal feuds.