AFP marks anniversary of Benham Rise renaming

MANILA, Philippines — The Armed Forces of the Philippines-Northern Luzon Command (AFP-Nolcom) celebrated the second anniversary of the renaming of Benham Rise to Philippine Rise on Thursday.

Highlighted by a simple flag-raising ceremony at Casiguran Bay aboard the Philippine Navy’s BRP Davao del Sur, the event was followed by the send-off of vessels from the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) and Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) to conduct maritime patrol around the Philippine Rise, a 13-million hectare underwater plateau located in the northeastern seaboard of the country.

“The celebration commemorates the second anniversary of the renaming of Benham Rise to Philippine Rise last May 16, 2017 and the sixth year after the Philippine Rise was awarded to the country and it was granted sovereign rites by the United Nations Convention of the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) by the United Nations over said maritime area last April 2012,” Nolcom spokesman Maj. Ericson Bulosan said.

Nolcom also hosted a maritime forum with fishermen in Casiguran, Aurora during the event, where maritime safety and pertinent laws and programs as well as initiatives for fishing and the welfare of people living on shoreline communities were discussed.