Sri Lanka hands 37 Chinese fishermen to embassy

Reuters: Sri Lanka handed over 37 Chinese fishermen to their embassy on Tuesday, officials said, two days after the Sri Lankan navy arrested them for fishing without permission in the island nation’s offshore waters.

The fishermen were arrested aboard two trawlers off the east coast town of Batticaloa on Sunday, along with two Sri Lankan agents.

“The fault is not with the (Chinese) crew. The case is against the (Sri Lankan) owner now,” Navy spokesman Kosala Warnakulasuriya told Reuters. “We have handed over the Chinese crew to officials from the Chinese embassy,” he said.

Sri Lanka’s police spokesman, Ajith Rohana, said the two Sri Lankan agents were given bail after appearing in court.

The trawlers have a licence to fish outside Sri Lankan waters but were seized while fishing inside the 300 nautical mile zone.