Mangalore: Wife of Glen Aroza, Indian captain
of a Panama vessel, who has been detained in Hualien Taiwan on
charge that it collided with a Taiwanese trawler killing two
fishermen, on Tuesday denied the allegation and dubbed the
detention and investigation as "illegal".
"Allegations of any neglect or wrongful act of the master
(of the ship) are without any basis," Preetha Aroza said.
"The detention and investigation against the master and
crew of Panama vessel TOSA are patently illegal and without
jurisdiction," she said on her husband`s detention since April
18.
"TOSA was on the high seas well outside Taiwan`s
territorial waters as defined by international law. Thus the
Taiwanese authorities have no criminal or civil jurisdiction."
Furthermore, there was no evidence of any contact between
the trawler and the ship, and the inspection of the hulls of
the trawler and TOSA revealed no physical contact, Preetha
claimed.
She said it was later alleged that the 21.6 metres long
and 100 ton trawler capsized due to the waves created by TOSA.
"However, anyone with nodding acquaintance with ships and
seas, know that it is impossible for a trawler of that size to
capsize due to waves created by a ship in wind force 5/6
Beaufort scale (scale of wind speed), unless the trawler was
inherently unstable and un-seaworthy," she said.
Bureau Report
