Chinese fishermen see case dismissed

Chinese fishermen see case dismissed

OLONGAPO, Philippines (AP): A judge dismissed yesterday
charges of illegal entry into Philippine territory against 21
Chinese fishermen apprehended by the navy near the disputed
Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea.

Judge Eliodoro Ubiadas of the Olongapo City Regional Trial
Court said it has not yet been established that the area where
the Chinese fishermen were arrested "exclusively belongs to the
exclusive economic zone of the Philippines".

The Chinese fishermen were arrested May 20 about 12 kilometers
off Scarborough Shoal, which Manila claims is Philippine
territory but Beijing says has been part of China since ancient
times.

China has protested the arrest of the fishermen and demanded
their immediate release. President Fidel Ramos ignored the
request, and said the Philippine judicial system would deal with
the fishermen.