TWO Chinese Coast Guard vessels are tailing the trip of the Atin Ito coalition to Pag-asa Island, in the contested West Philippine Sea (WPS), where the group will hold a concert and distribute supplies to Filipino fishermen, the Philippine Navy said yesterday.
Rear Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad, the Navy’s spokesman for the West Philippine Sea (WPS), said Atin Ito’s vessel, M/V Kapitan Felix Oca, started sailing to Pag-asa Island early morning yesterday, from El Nido, Palawan.
Carrying some 150 volunteers, artists, and media men, M/V Kapitan Felix Oca is due to reach Pag-asa Island this morning.
“The last report from the group was that they were being tailed by two Chinese Coast Guard vessels,” Trinidad said in a press briefing at Camp Aguinaldo.
Atin Ito, in its Facebook page, said the two Chinese vessels that shadowed their ship have the bow numbers 3306 and 21549.
It said the shadowing occurred some 54 nautical miles off the coast of El Nido.
Atin Ito said CCG 3306 was about three nautical miles, CCG 21549 about five nautical miles from the Philippine vessel.
“Both Philippines and China have issued radio challenges,” it said.
Trinidad said there were no indications the Chinese Coast Guard (CCG) vessels will take “aggressive action” against the Atin Ito vessel.
“So far, there are no indications yet of any coercive aggressive actions by the Chinese Coast Guard or the maritime militia,” he said.
Trinidad said the military, through the Western Command, is monitoring Atin Ito’s activity.
He said “appropriate contingencies” are in place.
“Your government instrumentalities in the maritime domain are prepared for any eventuality. We are prepared to respond to provide their support or assistance,” he said.
Trinidad also said there has been “no significant increase” of Chinese vessels near Pag-asa Island during the Atin Ito mission.
Pag-asa Island, about 280 nautical miles from Puerto Princesa City, is the largest among the nine features occupied by Filipino troops in the West Philippine Sea in the South China Sea.
Trinidad said the island is about 12 nautical miles from the Chinese-occupied Subi Reef. He said a “good number” of CCG and Chinese maritime vessels are at the vicinity of the reef.
The trip is Atin Ito’s third civilian-led mission to the WPS. It will run up to May 30.
Aside from the concert, the mission features a number of other activities including community dialogues and cultural exchanges aboard the ship.
VIOLATION
The Chinese Embassy in Manila yesterday accused the Philippines of violating the 2002 Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea by sending personnel to Sandy Cay under the guise of scientific research.
The embassy, through its spokesperson, issued the statement in response to a statement by the Philippine National Maritime Council and the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources last week accusing the China Coast Guard of aggressive actions and unlawful interference against Philippine civilian vessels conducting routine marine scientific research mission in the vicinity of Sandy Cay.
The embassy said the feature it calls Tiexian Jiao is part of its territory and warned Manila against further action.
“Nansha Qundao (Spratly Islands), including Tiexian Jiao, has always been China’s territory. China has indisputable sovereignty over Nansha Qundao and its adjacent waters,” the embassy said, adding it is an uninhabited feature of Nansha Qundao.
“Last week, the Philippine government dispatched personnel to Tiexian Jiao under the pretext of conducting scientific research. This action constitutes a serious violation of Article 5 of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea, which explicitly states that all parties shall “exercise self-restraint in the conduct of activities that would complicate or escalate disputes and affect peace and stability, including refraining from inhabiting presently uninhabited islands, reefs, shoals, cays, and other features,” the embassy further said.
It said that since the declaration’s adoption in 2002, all parties have generally refrained from entering uninhabited features in the disputed waters until the recent actions by Manila.
It accused Manila of conducting 27 unauthorized landings involving 167 personnel on uninhabited features in the South China Sea since January this year despite what it said are strong protests and representation by the Chinese government.
‘DECEPTION’
The embassy also expressed surprise that the scientific research missions conducted by the Philippine government included media crew, adding this is done to “seemingly stage and record the events, resembling film production rather than genuine research.”
“The underlying intentions behind such activities are self-evident. It is clear which party initiated the provocation and which is engaging in deception,” it added.
The embassy said Beijing will continue to take resolute measures to safeguard its territorial sovereignty, maintain Tiexian Jiao’s status of “no personnel or facilities,” and steadfastly uphold the sanctity of the DOC.
Manila has repeatedly complained of aggressive Chinese actions in the disputed waters, including the use of water cannons against Philippine Coast Guard ships on patrol and resupply missions.
Beijing anchors its claim to almost the entire South China Sea on its so-called nine dash line but the Permanent Court of Arbitration in 2016 junked it, saying it has no legal or historical basis.
But Beijing refused to honor or abide by the arbitral panel’s ruling and continue to press its aggressive claim in the area, sending near constant coast guard patrols and maritime militia vessels, while fortifying its man-made islands with military garrison. – With Ashzel Hachero
