Troops ordered to avoid hostile action in Kalayaan Islands

MANILA, Philippines - Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin instructed military troops based in Palawan yesterday to maintain and continue their air and sea territorial patrols in the area.

However, they were also told to avoid any hostile action, particularly within the Kalayaan Island Group (KIG), so as not to compromise peace and stability in the region.

Gazmin, along with Armed Forces chief Gen. Eduardo Oban, was at the Western Command (Wescom) to personally get an update on the reported series of air and sea intrusions by foreign forces in the KIG.

“His (Gazmin) directive was for all our (Wescom) forces to be vigilant and continue with the air and sea patrols in the area,” defense spokesman Eduardo Batac said.

However, Batac said Gazmin reminded the troops that in all their actions, lines of communication must always be open.

Batac himself admitted that the military does not have the capability to take any action against intruders, the latest of which were two jet fighters that reportedly buzzed two OV-10 Bronco planes while conducting reconnaissance patrol over the KIG area last May 11.

Batac said that as of yesterday, the two jetfighters have not been identified due to lack of military radar systems.

He added that the protection of the country’s vast maritime resources must be prioritized.

“We have to look into our priorities again and see to it that we come up with a credible presence and some kind of deterrence in the area (KIG) to make it more difficult for intruders to enter our territory,” Batac said.

Gazmin’s visit to Wescom came after his meeting with Chinese Defense Minister Liang Guanglie at Camp Aguinaldo last week where the two agreed to settle the Spratlys issue through military-to-military and defense-to-defense dialogues and cooperation instead of resorting to hostile actions.

Out of this verbal agreement between the two defense chiefs, Batac said they are now looking forward to the holding of a common activity to involve all troops deployed in the Spratlys.

“The plan is to engage the different nationalities who have forces there to have some kind of interaction like sporting events and the like to promote dialogue and communication among the different people,” Batac said.

122 Vietnamese arrested

Meantime, 122 Vietnamese were arrested for illegal fishing in the waters off Palawan yesterday morning.

Chief Superintendent Agrimero Cruz Jr., spokesman of the Philippine National Police (PNP), said the foreigners were apprehended within the territorial waters of Balabac town in Palawan at around 10 a.m. yesterday.

Cruz said the 122 Vietnamese were on board seven vessels temporarily docked and anchored along the shoreline of Barangay Poblacion 4.

The PNP spokesman noted that elements of the PNP Maritime Seaborne Unit and the Philippine Navy were conducting seaborne patrol when they intercepted the vessels.  – With Cecille Suerte Felipe