A Filipino seafarer was killed in after a brawl broke out at a Taiwanese fishing vessel in the Indian Ocean.
According to the Taiwan fisheries department, the brawl started when the fishing vessel’s chief officer “hacked two of his crew to death in a disciplinary action dispute”, reported ABS-CBN News.
Two crew members, including a Filipino national, have been confirmed dead.
Meanwhile, six crew members who were forced to jump overboard the vessel to escape the brawl are still missing.
Another 12 crew members, including the captain, also jumped off the vessel but were rescued by other fishing vessels and container ships nearby.
Among those onboard the fishing vessel Wen Peng were 21 Filipino and Indonesian workers.
Taiwan is noted for being one of the world’s biggest tuna fishing fleets in the world. However, environmental group Greenpeace reported that the country also holds a poor record for its treatment of workers, including those from the Philippines and Indonesia.
