| dc.description.abstract | Since Taiwan is surrounded by the sea, its history is closely related to marine activities. When the aviation industry was not popular, ships used to be the vital transportation for Taiwanese people. However, shipwrecks were often heard due to bad weather like typhoons in summer and strong monsoon in winter.
Both farming and fishery are industries relying on weather greatly. However, fishermen seem to suffer from more risks working on the sea. Though there have been numerous cases of shipwrecks in the history, studies concerning them are rare to see. In this case, this study is aimed at discussing the causes of shipwrecks, the prevention policies of Taiwan Governor-General’s Office, and the issues of shipwreck relief based on the shipwrecks taking place in the period of Japanese colonial Taiwan.
This study firstly divides the news of coastal and offshore shipwrecks published by Taiwan daily News between 1896 and 1944 into three periods: 1896-1910, 1911-1931, and 1932-1944, to analyze their causes like seasons, waters, and regions. It concludes that the shipwrecks tend to occur in winter in the waters prosperous in accordance with the fishery development in the Japanese colonial period. Initially, the fishery was popular in the northern offshore area. Later on, it extended to the offshore areas surrounding Taiwan and the Southeast Asian waters. On the other hand, most of the shipwrecks were caused by the weather initially. However, after power fishing crafts were introduced in Taisho and Showa periods, human factors like mechanical issues, pirate attacks, wars, and breaking into other countries’ territory sea became the main cause of shipwrecks.
Concerning the precautions of Taiwan Governor-General’s Office, it established regulations and conducted workshops of marine activities. The former was mainly about the building of fishing crafts, equipment, and sailors’ sailing skills, while the latter was regarding the knowledge of shipwreck prevention and the promotion of new regulations. On the other hand, the establishment of weather report system and the operation of harbor warning signs were helpful as well in terms of shipwreck prevention. By collecting the information of weather forecast via radio, fishing crafts on the sea would be more likely to avoid the attack of natural disasters. Taiwan Governor-General’s Office also installed hardware like lighthouses, refuge harbors, and radio equipment to help prevent shipwrecks.
Lastly, as to the shipwreck relief, it can be divided into fishing crafts rescue and victim relief. When people living in the coastal areas discovered fishing crafts in wreck, they would reported to the police immediately and summoned “hoko” and “zhuang-ding corps” to come to rescue. If the shipwreck took place on the sea, the fishermen may turn to other fishing crafts passing by or their marine associations for help. Moreover, they may also turn to the Marine for further help. On the other hand, marine associations would issue relief allowance to the shipwreck victims when they were ill or dead. Besides, marine associations would abide by regulations to rescue and help fishermen in shipwrecks. Also, fishery insurance is considered a practice of active precaution. It helps fishermen to recover from their tragedies and restore their career soon.
Key word: Fish craft, Shipwreck | en_US |