Gov’t condemns assault on supply mission
BY VICTOR REYES and ASHZEL HACHERO
CHINESE Coast Guard vessels on Tuesday fired water cannons at two Philippine civilian vessels bringing supplies to Filipino troops stationed in one of the areas in the West Philippine Sea in the South China Sea, National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon Jr and Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. said yesterday.
“Fortunately, no one was hurt, but our boats had to abort their re-supply mission,” Locsin said.
Malacañang said the Philippine government will continue to defend the country’s sovereignty and rights.
“The Department of Foreign Affairs has acted swiftly and has condemned the incident involving the Chinese Coast Guard. As we have in the past, we will continue to assert our sovereignty, sovereign rights, and jurisdiction over our territory,” said Cabinet Secretary and acting presidential spokesman Karlo Nograles.
Vice President Leni Robredo said the latest harassment case emphasizes the need for government to show a stronger stance in asserting Philippine sovereignty to protect Filipinos’ interests. She said the government should assert the Philippine victory over China in 2016 before the Permanent Court of Arbitration.
Esperon, concurrent chairman of the National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea, said the Filipino boats Unaiza Mae 1 and 3 withdrew after one of them was damaged because of the harassment of three Chinese Guard vessels.
Esperon said the two boats were dispatched to bring supplies to the troops, staying at the Navy’s BRP Sierra Madre which has long been grounded at the Ayungin Shoal, about 174 nautical miles from Puerto Princesa City in Palawan.
“The two wooden-hulled boats were trying to resupply our detachment in Ayungin Shoal, in Sierra Madre last November 16, that’s the Unaiza Mae 1 and 3 but they were blocked by two (Chinese) Coast Guard vessels and the third, that was the one that water cannoned the two (Filipino boats) for one hour,” said Esperon.
Esperon said the outrigger of Unaiza 3 was damaged, forcing them to abort the resupply mission and return to Palawan.
“They maneuvered and they have to abort their resupply mission. Of course, we have protested that, Secretary Locsin already gave a statement about that,” he said.
Esperon condemned the harassment, adding the Chinese should not be in the area which is within the Philippines’ 200-nautical mile exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
“We have jurisdiction over the area in connection with UNCLOS and the arbitral ruling,” he said.
By UNCLOS, Esperon was referring to the 1982 United Nations Convention for the Law of the Sea that allows coastal states like the Philippines a 200-nautical mile EEZ for exploration and exploitation of natural resources.
The 2016 Permanent Arbitral Court based in the Netherlands invalidated China’s excessive nine-dash line claim in the South China Sea and affirmed the Philippines’ rights to its 200-nautical mile EZZ.
Esperon said the government will be sending boats soon to resupply the Filipino troops in Ayungin Shoal “and we do not have to ask the permission of anybody because that is within our territory.”
On the possibility the Chinese will again harass the supply boats, Esperon said: “We hope that with our protest, they will also heed our calls for them to back off.”
‘UNUSUAL PRESENCE’
Esperon said they will be sending government ships, either from the Philippine Coast Guard or Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, to secure the supply mission, and not Navy ships.
Esperon also said “unusual presence” of Chinese militia vessels in Ayungin Shoal has been observed.
“Usually, there are only two Chinese maritime militia there but in the last week, there are 19,” said Esperon.
In Pag-asa Island, another Philippine-held island about 180 nautical miles from Puerto Princesa City, Esperon said there were 45 Chinese militia vessels monitored in the island also as of last week.
“That’s the record number for the year (in Pag-asa Island) so they (Chinese) are very aggressive” said Esperon, adding the average number of Chinese militia vessels in Pag-asa was less than 20.
“Some of them remain there, they are not leaving. It’s possible it will decrease but last week, it reached 45, that’s too many,” said Esperon.
Asked if the government will also file protest for the increased presence in Pag-asa Island, Esperon said the DFA is filing diplomatic protest “on a daily basis” against China for their presence in Pag-asa Island.
“We continue (to file protests) when it comes to Pag-asa and their militarization,” said Esperon.
A senior security official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the two Filipino boats harassed by the Chinese in Pag-asa Island were also carrying personnel tasked to repair the BRP Sierra Madre which was grounded in the area in 1999.
“We are gradually repairing BRP Sierra Madre because the ship is being eaten by rust. We have to maintain it because it’s a commissioned vessel (of the Navy)… We’re worried about the safety of our people there, so we sent materials needed for repair. In fact the materials are already there,” the source said.
“But they were blocked on Tuesday night,” said the official, adding the incident occurred around eight miles from the shoal.
“The outrigger of one of the boats was damaged so they have to go (back) to Puerto Prince Princesa. They arrived there safely, no one was hurt. We just need to fix the damaged boat,” he said.
He said the military did not use Navy ships for the resupply mission, noting the Chinese have also blocked Navy ships in the past. “It’s just to ease the tension, (that’s why) we resorted to the civilian boats in bringing our supplies,” he said.
Locsin said he has conveyed to Chinese Ambassador Huang Xilian and the Chinese Foreign Ministry in Beijing Manila’s “outrage, condemnation and protest of the incident.”
“Ayungin Shoal is part of the Kalayaan Island Group, which is an integral part of the Philippines, as well as the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone and continental shelf, and over which the Philippines has sovereignty, sovereign rights and jurisdiction,” Locsin said.
He said what the Chinese vessels has done is illegal as they have “no law enforcement rights in and around these areas.”
“They must take heed and back off,” he added.
Locsin said the incident may affect the relationship between the two countries.
“This failure to exercise self-restraint threatens the special relationship between the Philippines and China that President Rodrigo Duterte and President Xi Jin Oing have worked hard to nurture,” he said.
At the same time, Locsin said he reminded Beijing that the supply boats that were blocked by their Coast Guard ships are public vessels and as such covered by the Mutual Defense Treaty between Manila and Washington.
The mutual defense treaty signed in 1951 says the two countries will come to the other’s aid in case of foreign invasion or aggression.
Despite the incident, Locsin said the Armed Forces Western Command based in Puerto Princesa City, Palawan will continue to supply the troops in Ayungin Shoal.
“We do not ask permission to do what we need to do in our territory,” the DFA chief added.
In September 2019, the DFA also protested to Beijing when Chinese coast guard ships blocked three Philippine civilian vessels bringing supplies to Ayungin Shoal. — With Jocelyn Montemayor
