Chinese run over Filipino boat; don't help

[Jolly_Penguin]

This is messed up. A Chinese boat ran over a Filipino fishing boat in the south China Sea (in Philippines territory) and then doesn't stop to help the fisherman as the boat sinks. They were lucky a Vietnamese ship came across them to wave them.

Duterte reacts by sucking up to the Chinese and downplaying the event. Same Duterte who made a big deal out of a garbage scow left too long in a port in the story I linked to earlier.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/worl...ce1e22-9107-11e9-956a-88c291ab5c38_story.html

 

[Jolly_Penguin]

People would care if this were a US ship.

 

[lpetrich]

It was a hit-and-run accident. It reminds me of this: Case of 'hit-and-run submarine' adds strain to US- Japanese relations - CSMonitor.com (1981 April 13) -- an American missile submarine hit a small Japanese freighter, and while the sub had some minor damage, the freighter sank some minutes later.

But the incident has quickly brewed up into a political storm for several reasons:

* It took the United States more than a day to notify Japanese authorities of the collision.

* The freighter's crew have claimed neither the submarine nor a US military aircraft circling overhead made any rescue attempt.

* Questions have been raised about why the submarine was so close to Japanese territory and whether it was carrying any missiles. (It has a capability to carry 16 Polaris missiles each armed with three warheads.)

Two Japanese destroyers picked up the survivors after 18 hours adrift.

I remembered "hit-and-run submarine" from long ago, and I quickly found that article on it.

 Hit and run
What Exactly is a Hit and Run Accident?
Penalties for Fleeing the Scene of a Car Accident | Nolo
Doing a hit-and-run in an accident typically carries extra penalties.

 

[Toni]

I hadn't heard of this until I saw the article posted here.

First blush: Not much that happens in the Philippines is really noticed by most US citizens. Part of our more insular mindset and frankly we've got a lot of crazy shit happening here for the past couple of years and are holding our breath to see if Trump has decided which country he can start a war (and win) with in order to ride its coattails to victory in 2020. That's not even the worst stuff he's doing so, yeah, we're a bit distracted.

Also at first blush, it does sound very much as though it were an accident but it is unforgivable that the Chinese vessel did not stop to aide the Filipino sailors. That said, I almost admire (and cannot believe I wrote those words) Duarte's restraint re: China. The difference between this incident with China and the garbage from Canada is that nobody actually expects that Canada would start a war if Duarte trash talks and makes rude gestures. China is a different story altogether. China is much closer and much, much, much more militaristic.

I'm glad that it seems all the sailors were rescued. (My apologies if that isn't true--I'm feeling some sleep deprivation here). I hope that everybody is OK.

You are right that in the US and internationally, it would be a much bigger deal if the ship were from the US (or Iran or Japan or Great Britain, etc.).

If Duarte is actually using some sense and trying to avoid escalating this into a military event, then--and again--I cannot believe that I am writing this: I admire his restraint and think he's using good sense. I hope other nations speak out and that China makes apologies and reparations.

I really hope there is no war.

 

[Jolly_Penguin]

The Vietnamese have been beaming with pride over being the ones who did come by and save the Filipino sailors.

I think that highlights some of the tensions in the area. The Chinese are constantly posturing and attempting to control everyone around them, and there is a lot of resentment to is, but surface level smiling at it.

Reminds me a lot of how Canada and some of Europe has long regarded the US.

 

[zorq]

Hit and run is ingrained into Chinese culture. In China, good samaritans who help sick and dying people by bringing them to the hospital or calling for an ambulance are required to pay any resulting medical bills if the sick individual or their family can't or refuse to pay. This has lead to an even more callus attitude toward strangers.

Edit:
I did some research and China did pass a new good samaritan law 1 year ago giving immunity to people who help others in distress. But at this point it is still just part of the culture.

 

[dismal]

I have a bit of an issue with the phrasing of "A Chinese boat".

Unless the government of China owns the boat it's not China's boat, it's some individual's boat.

I would hesitate to make broad sweeping statements about a country based on the actions of one individual.

That one individual may, however, be a complete a-hole who violated the laws of the sea, etc, etc.

The journalism here is atrocious, so its hard to tell which this is.

 

[Tom Sawyer]

I have a bit of an issue with the phrasing of "A Chinese boat".

Unless the government of China owns the boat it's not China's boat, it's some individual's boat.

I would hesitate to make broad sweeping statements about a country based on the actions of one individual.

That one individual may, however, be a complete a-hole who violated the laws of the sea, etc, etc.

The journalism here is atrocious, so its hard to tell which this is.

This is a very American post.

 

[Toni]

I have a bit of an issue with the phrasing of "A Chinese boat".

Unless the government of China owns the boat it's not China's boat, it's some individual's boat.

I would hesitate to make broad sweeping statements about a country based on the actions of one individual.

That one individual may, however, be a complete a-hole who violated the laws of the sea, etc, etc.

The journalism here is atrocious, so its hard to tell which this is.

This is a very American post.

No it isn’t.

 

[ZiprHead]

The Chinese are notoriously indifferent to the lives of others. A baby crawls out into the street where it could get run over, nobody bothers to do anything about it and the kid gets run over and the person that runs the kid over doesn't bother to stop too. Someone reports an injured person and the bills become their responsibility of the reporter, actively discouraging good samaritonism (although I understand that law was rescinded last year).

 

[Jolly_Penguin]

The Chinese are notoriously indifferent to the lives of others. A baby crawls out into the street where it could get run over, nobody bothers to do anything about it and the kid gets run over and the person that runs the kid over doesn't bother to stop too. Someone reports an injured person and the bills become their responsibility of the reporter, actively discouraging good samaritonism (although I understand that law was rescinded last year).

I've never been in China itself, but I have encountered many Chinese tourists and many of them do seem to have no regard for anybody but themselves. There does seem to be something cultural going on with that. The reputation is even worse within southeast asia than that of Americans (which is bad all over the world). I feel bad for the good courteous Chinese and American tourists and am always mindful not to prejudge them.

 

[Trausti]

[INSERT ASIAN DRIVER JOKE]

 

[Loren Pechtel]

Hit and run is ingrained into Chinese culture. In China, good samaritans who help sick and dying people by bringing them to the hospital or calling for an ambulance are required to pay any resulting medical bills if the sick individual or their family can't or refuse to pay. This has lead to an even more callus attitude toward strangers.

Edit:
I did some research and China did pass a new good samaritan law 1 year ago giving immunity to people who help others in distress. But at this point it is still just part of the culture.

It's not that they were actually required to pay for being a good samaritan, it's that by acting that way they were figured to be at fault as the uninvolved person wouldn't have done that.