China protests Japan's detention of fishing boat

China has protested to Japan over the latter's detention of a fishing boat from the Taiwan region, a Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said on Friday, adding that Japan should correct its wrongdoings immediately.

The Chinese side has made solemn representations to the Japanese side over the detention of the fishing boat hongcaitou 6, the ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said.

Japan detained the boat and its crew on Tuesday, saying they had violated Japanese fishery laws, according to reports.

They were released after paying bail.

The Chinese government attaches great importance to protecting the lawful rights of Chinese fisherfolk, including those from Taiwan, Mao said at a news conference.

"According to the China-Japan fishery protocol, the Japanese side has no right to impose law enforcement measures on Chinese fishing boats in relevant waters," Mao said.

"The Chinese side asked the Japanese side to correct the wrongdoing immediately, and take effective measures to prevent similar incidents from happening again," Mao said.