Chinese coast guard bullies PH fishing boat in disputed waters

Disputed South China Sea or West Philippine Sea? Wikipedia photo

AYUNGIN SHOAL, Palawan , Philippines – Chinese bullying in disputed waters strikes again; this time, a vessel of the Chinese Coast Guard showed aggression towards a small fishing boat with local officials and journalists on board. The group was on their way to Pag-Asa Island in Palawan on the evening of Aug. 1.

The group’s boat, the ML Shanina – a small single-engine motorboat – was seeking shelter from bad weather when the Chinese vessel with body number CCG 3111 sailed towards it, making what was described by Jaime Laude, journalist from The Philippine Star and one of the people on board the Shanina, as “hostile maneuvers” around it. The passengers felt threatened by the vessel’s moves, and scrambled for life vests and floaters.

Aside from Laude, Pag-Asa Mayor Eugenio Bito-onon Jr.

, journalists from Asahi TV, Asahi Shimbun, and dzRH were on board for the trip arranged for them by freelance foreign news producer Arlene Samson-Espiritu.

Laude reported that the Shanina had been sailing on rough waters off mainland Palawan for over 24 hours when it came upon the Chinese vessel towards the southern side of Ayungin shoal.

The Chinese vessel turned its strong floodlights full-force on the smaller boat, as it blew its horn and signaled for them to return to open sea, in the volatile seas and poor weather conditions. The bigger craft then proceeded to chase after the smaller vessel for around 30 minutes; stopping only after the fishing boat reached a shallow portion of a shoal.

In reaction to this, Mayor Bito-onon said: “Coast guard ships are supposed to assist and help vessels in distress while in the open sea. Why are they doing this? This is a clear violation of the coast guards’ international mandate.”

There has been escalating conflict for several months now between the Philippines and China, due to a dispute over reefs and islands in an area Manila calls the West Philippine Sea, as against its more popularly (though not necessarily more accurate) known name, South China Sea.

China has laid territorial claims of nearly the entire South China Sea, including waters near the coast of its neighbours, Japan and Vietnam.

China has also set into motion a fisheries law requiring foreign vessels to obtain permits for all activity in much of the South China Sea.