No new Chinese structures, but 4 ships in Panatag – expert

MANILA, Philippines - There are no new Chinese structures in Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal but four Chinese ships are still in the area, a defense expert monitoring West Philippine Sea issues revealed yesterday.

Rommel Banlaoi of the Philippine Association of Chinese Studies said reports about the supposed buildup in Panatag Shoal are not true.

“It’s a false report,” Banlaoi told The STAR.

“(There are) no new structures (in Panatag Shoal). Three CMS (Chinese maritime surveillance) vessels and one FLEC (Fisheries Law Enforcement Command) vessel are in the vicinity,” he said.

Banlaoi said building structures in Panatag Shoal could further complicate the territorial row in the West Philippine Sea.

“The report, if verified, will raise regional security anxieties as the establishment of a new structure in the contested land features will run counter to the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (West Philippine Sea),” Banloi said.

“That will also set a precedent that can alter the status quo in the area. A change of status quo can complicate the already complex nature of conflicts in the South China Sea,” he added.

In 2002, Southeast Asian countries and China signed the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC) to resolve territorial disputes peacefully. However, specific and binding guidelines have yet to be approved.

Parties of the declaration vowed to “exercise self-restraint in the conduct of activities that would complicate or escalate disputes and affect peace and stability.”

Unverified media reports, however, quoted unnamed sources as saying the Philippine military has photos showing the Chinese building structures in the shoal.

The reports claimed that at least three Chinese vessels are in the area to unload construction materials.

Panatag Shoal, also known as Bajo de Masinloc, is located 124 nautical miles from the nearest base point in Zambales, well within the Philippines’ 200-nautical mile exclusive economic zone.

Chinese occupation of the shoal began on April 10, 2012, when its surveillance vessels barred the Philippine Navy from arresting Chinese fishermen who had poached endangered marine species.

The ill-equipped Philippine Navy had failed to stop the poachers from carting off their harvest.

No plan to send ships to Panatag

Meanwhile, the government will not send ships to Panatag Shoal to assert its ownership of the area even if the presence of Chinese vessels has affected the livelihood of local fishermen.

“We have taken a deliberate policy of avoiding or responding to any provocative action or statement that may be presented to us in the course of this dispute,” deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said.

Unable to defend the fishermen’s right to fish in Philippine territory, the government is now resorting to measures that would assist the affected residents. These include identifying alternative fishing areas and providing help to the displaced fishermen.

The Philippines has protested the presence of Chinese vessels in the shoal but China continued to deploy ships to the area.

Despite the dispute, the Philippines is still looking forward to developing other aspects of its ties with China.

Asked to react to yesterday’s commemoration of the Filipino-Chinese Friendship Day, Valte said the maritime dispute is just part of the country’s relationship with China.

“Our relationship with our neighbor is multifaceted… There are other facets of that relationship that we continue to develop and that we continue to move forward on,” Valte said.