Navy apologizes to China over sea incident

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine Navy (PN) has apologized to China after one of its warships accidentally rammed a Chinese fishing boat in disputed waters in the South China Sea, the Department of National Defense (DND) spokesman said yesterday.

An apology was sent to China’s embassy in Manila to avoid creating tension in the area, Zosimo Paredes told reporters, saying there were no reports of damage or casualties in the incident.

The Chinese vessel, he said, had been poaching in Philippine waters.

“The minor incident was unfortunate, that was a result of unforeseen circumstances,” he said.

Paredes said a navy patrol boat, BRP Rizal, was on patrol in the Reed Bank on Tuesday when it spotted a Chinese fishing vessel towing 35 smaller, unoccupied boats.

According to him, the navy boat had steering problems when it went to challenge the main fishing boat and became entangled with one of the smaller boats.

“There was no intention to ram them. They were poaching in our exclusive economic zone,” Paredes said.

The main fishing boat cut the cables to the smaller empty boats, leaving 24 behind, and sailed away, said Navy spokesman Lt. Col. Omar Tonsay.

There was no mention of the incident in China.

Claimants to the sea have been trying to cool tensions after a series of disputes earlier this year, including when Chinese patrol boats threatened to ram a Philippine-contracted survey ship in the Reed Bank in March.

China, Taiwan and four Southeast Asian states, including the Philippines, have conflicting claims over the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea, an area believed to have rich deposits of oil and gas. It is also a rich fishing ground.

Last week, China and Vietnam signed an agreement seeking to contain their long-running spat over the seas.

China, which says it has indisputable sovereignty over the seas and islands within, has rejected international arbitration of the conflicting claims, and has proposed joint development of resources.

President Aquino said his government would want to resolve the sovereignty issue first before any joint development can be done.

During a visit to China in August and September, Aquino sought to cast aside tension over the dispute and said he wanted to deepen trade and investment ties.

Not intentional

Western Command (Wescom) commander Maj. Gen. Juancho Sabban yesterday said that last Tuesday’s collision was unintentional and not aimed at harming the Chinese fishermen or damaging their vessel.

However, he said the incident will not deter them from performing their duties, as he stressed that the ongoing non-confrontational air and maritime territorial patrols will continue in the West Philippine Sea.

“As per guidance from our national leadership we will be non-confrontational in the conduct of our sovereignty air and maritime patrols,” Sabban said.

The top military official added that they are awaiting word from the Chinese embassy if they want to recover these small fishing boats.

Reacting to earlier reports that Taiwan is planning to deploy an advance missile system at its occupied Itu Aba, the biggest island in the Spratlys archipelago, Sabban said this would not stop the military forces in Palawan from performing their mission.

“We are non-confrontational but we will not be cowed by mere deployment of missiles by other claimant countries,” he said.

He admitted though that this will further increase the tension in the area, which is also being claimed in whole or in part by China, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan.

“There was no intent whatsoever. We are just doing the rightful job. They (Chinese) were within our territory,” Paredes said.

Malacañang deferred comment until the Department of Foreign Affairs submits the full details of the incident.

Paredes explained that the navy patrol ship, monitoring the presence of the Chinese fishing vessel, initially issued the usual challenge while passing by the area as part of the maritime code of conduct being observed by all sailors of the world.

However, the gunboat developed a problem on its steering mechanism and the skipper had to execute an emergency maneuver, but still could not avoid a minor collision.

“There was no major damage. The Chinese boat just abandoned the smaller boats while they were about to be checked because they’re within Philippine waters,” Paredes said.

In March this year, two Chinese gunboats harassed a civilian vessel commissioned by the Department of Energy (DOE) to conduct maritime research and studies near the Reed Bank Basin.

Wescom had to dispatch its OV-10 bombers but failed to catch up with intruding vessels.

The area, believed to be rich in mineral and fuel deposits, is also being claimed by China, who earlier announced that it is deploying its biggest and modern oil rig near Reed Bank Basin.

Accordingly, patrolling Navy vessels would later recover near Jackson atoll, an area adjacent to the Reed Bank Basin, a huge submersible buoy that could be used to construct an underwater foundation preparatory to construction of a vertical structure near the area.

The buoy was so huge that the Navy had to destroy it instead of towing it to mainland Palawan.

The same month, Chinese gunboats also fired on Filipino fishermen in the area.

These incidents are among the series of intrusions that have been the subject of diplomatic protests filed by the Philippine government against China.

China simply dismissed the protests as it maintained its territorial claim over the entire South China Sea. – Aurea Calica