Fisherman dies in border incident

JAKARTA: One Indonesian fisherman was killed and two were wounded when Papua New Guinea (PNG) soldiers attacked their Taiwanese fishing boat in the Solomon Islands waters, Antara reported Wednesday.

The Shin Shyang, owned by Global Industries of Taiwan, was hit by machine gun fire and a grenade near the war-torn island of Bougainville, which borders the Solomons.

The incident occurred while PNG Defense Force soldiers were besieging the parliament in Port Moresby, trying to force Prime Minister Sir Julius Chan to step down.

The wounded fishermen said they had been shot by soldiers who destroyed their radio in the attack. They said they did not know what had prompted the attack.

The PNG defense force has claimed that boats from the Solomons are smuggling arms to the Bougainville Revolutionary Army, which launched a secessionist uprising on the mineral-rich island nine years ago. (swe)