TWO vessels of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) are securing the trip of the Atin Ito coalition to the West Philippine Sea (WPS), the agency said yesterday.
Volunteers of Atin Ito, a group supporting government efforts to protect the nation’s interest in the contested area, arrived in El Nido, Palawan yesterday, a day after departing Manila, aboard the civilian vessel M/V Kapitan Felix Oca which also carried journalists. After a pre-departure concert in El Nido, the group would proceed to Pag-asa Island, the largest of nine features occupied by Filipino troops in the West Philippine Sea.
The group is scheduled to reach the island on Thursday morning, where it will hold another concert and distribute supplies to Filipino fishermen, said Commodore Jay Tarriela, PCG spokesman for the West Philippine Sea.
This is the Atin Ito’s third mission to the West Philippine Sea. The first two were to Ayungin Shoal in December 2023 and Panatag Shoal, also known as Scarborough Shoal and Bajo de Masinloc, in May last year.
Tarriela also said PCG ships BRP Melchora Aquino and BRP Malapascua were deployed to secure the mission from a “safe distance.”
“The intention is for the Coast Guard vessels to escort the Atin Ito convoy as they proceed to Pag-asa island,” he said in a press briefing.
Tarriela said China has deployed a number of vessels to shadow the two previous missions of Atin Ito. However, he said, the Chinese did not commit any aggressive action.
Tarriela said he expects China not to harass the third Atin Ito mission.
“I don’t think that they are going to do that because this is a civil society… They (China) also know that once they do that kind of response against a civilian-led initiative activity with local media, international media on board, they will be heavily criticized by in different parts of the world,” said Tarriela.
Acknowledging the PCG vessels might be a magnet to Chinese vessels, Tarriela said the PCG will keep a “safe distance, but no too far away” from the Atin Ito mission.
But if the Chinese vessels would appear to be planning to block the mission, “that’s the time that the Philippine Coast Guard will go near to ensure there will be no untoward incident between the Atin Ito and China Coast Guard vessels,” he said.
Tarriela declined to say what the PCG will do in case Chinese Coast Guard vessels harass the Atin Ito mission.
“That’s operational details,” he said.
National Security Council Assistant Director General Jonathan Malaya said Atin Ito requested the Coast Guard escort.
“Government is not involved in the planning, government is not involved in the execution of this but it just it just so happened that they requested for Coast Guard escort,” said Malaya, also spokesman of the National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea.
Since there is tension in the West Philippine Sea, Malaya said, the PCG has to heed the escort request.
“(It) is a purely private initiative and government is just there to ensure that they are properly escorted since they are Filipino citizens and it’s the responsibility of the Philippine Coast Guard to assist them if ever there are tensions that may arise because of their presence in the area,” said Malaya.
SOLIDARITY FOR PEACE
Atin Ito, in a statement, said the third civilian-led mission to the WPS will culminate in “a historic Sea Concert for Solidarity and Peace” near Pag-asa Island.
Aboard the M/V Kapitan Felix Oca, the participants underscored that the initiative seeks to promote peace, unity, and cultural solidarity in the West Philippine Sea through the universal language of music.
More than 150 people are aboard the ship — volunteers, artists and their crew, media people and boat staff.
“This continues our people-powered assertion of the Philippines’ sovereign rights and territorial integrity through peaceful, participatory actions that uplift the voices of our fisherfolk and coastal communities,” said Atin Ito co-convenor Rafaela “Paeng” David who is also president of Akbayan Party.
“We are showing the world that our commitment to the West Philippine Sea is not rooted in militarism or warmongering, but in compassion, community, and culture. Atin Ito’s historic sea concert is a love song to our seas and to the people who protect them,” David added.
Running from May 26 to 30, the mission features several activities, including the sunset musical send-off in El Nido, community dialogues, and cultural exchanges aboard the ship. The highlight will be a concert performance within Philippine territorial waters off Pag-asa Island.
MUSIC AS BRIDGE
Atin Ito said Filipino artists Noel Cabangon, Ebe Dancel, all-women rock band Rouge, rap collective Morobeats, and P-pop group HORI7ON will take center stage alongside international performers such as Japanese singer Fumi, Malaysian and Indonesian artists Viona and Kai Mata, and South Korean K-pop girl group I:Mond.
“We are using music as a bridge,” said Edicio dela Torre, Atin Ito co-convenor and president of the Philippine Rural Reconstruction Movement (PRRM).
“It connects communities divided by distance but united by shared seas. What we are building here is not just a movement for sovereignty, but a region-wide community of peace rooted in mutual respect, cooperation, and solidarity.”
Formed in 2023, Atin Ito is composed of groups including PRRM, Akbayan Party, PAKISAMA, the New Masinloc Fishermen Association, PKSK, Akbayan Youth, and the Student Council Alliance of the Philippines.
It is it the only civil society initiative to directly sail and resupply Filipino fisherfolk and frontliners in the disputed waters.
