PCG to help Pinoy fishermen going to Panatag

MANILA, Philippines - Aside from patrolling the area in and around Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said it would be on hand to help Filipino fishermen who have started returning to the shoal after the lifting of the Chinese blockade.

PCG commandant Rear Admiral William Melad yesterday said six ships would be involved in the regular patrols – three of which would be monitoring, control and surveillance (MCS) vessels.

“We will be changing patrol ships every two or three days,” Melad said. He said the patrols would be within the country’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) in the western side of Luzon, where Panatag – also called Bajo de Masinloc – is situated.

Among those to be deployed is the PCG’s new 44-meter multi-role response vessel (MRRV) BRP Tubbataha. Also being readied for patrol duty is BRP Davao del Norte, while BRP Pampanga is on standby.

For the Coast Guard, there is nothing out of the ordinary in the deployment of ships to the Panatag Shoal where it has always conducted “regular patrol,” Melad said.

The shoal is only 124 nautical miles off Zambales and is well within the country’s 200-mile EEZ.

An international tribunal, acting on a case filed in 2013 by Manila contesting China’s massive sea claim, declared the shoal a common fishing ground. Beijing disregarded the ruling issued last July.

“The mission of the ship is to patrol our EEZ and to look after our fishermen because the Coast Guard performs several functions that include law enforcement, it could also be for search and rescue and assistance,” Melad pointed out.

The Chinese have stopped harassing Filipino fishermen at the Panatag Shoal since late last month or after President Duterte’s return from his state visit to Beijing. Both Philippine and Chinese officials said the easing of Chinese’ hold on the shoal was a fruit of Duterte’s visit to Beijing.

Duterte and Chinese President Xi Jinping discussed the dispute over territories in the South China Sea and the West Philippine Sea but no formal agreement on Panatag was reached.

The Chinese took control of the shoal in 2012 after a standoff with the Philippine Navy, which had tried to apprehend Chinese poachers on two boats. Seized from the poachers were baby sharks, giant clams and endangered corals.

The Philippine Navy was forced to release the poachers together with their illegal catch after Chinese maritime surveillance vessels arrived and made threatening maneuvers.