TAIPEI: Taiwan's basketball association said Tuesday it has decided not to invite the Philippines to an international tournament in July in the wake of a recent diplomatic row.
The Chinese Taipei Basketball Association, which hosts the annual William Jones Cup, said it was following a government instruction "due to tense relations" over the fatal shooting of a Taiwanese fisherman by Philippine coastguards.
"It's a pity as the Philippines had participated in 24 out of 35 tournaments in the past and the box office for games featuring the Philippines was pretty good," said Michael Lee, a spokesman for the association.
"However, we have to abide by the government's decision because we need government support to organise the tournament," Lee told AFP.
Tensions mounted after a 65-year-old Taiwanese fisherman was shot dead on May 9 by Philippine coastguards who claimed his vessel had intruded into their territorial waters and tried to ram them.
Taiwan has rejected claims that the shooting took place in Philippine waters and that the killing was "unintended", and denied any ramming attempt.
President Ma Ying-jeou has described the incident as "cold-blooded murder".
Amid widespread public outrage on the island, Taiwan's government has rejected repeated apologies from the Philippines and announced a series of sanctions against the country.
In Manila, Philippines Basketball Association commissioner Chito Salud expressed regret that his country, which was last year's Jones Gup winner, would not be able to defend its title.
But he said in a statement the team would not be deterred in its quest to perform well in the coming FIBA-Asia Championship, to be hosted by the Philippines. (AFP)
