China's assurances over coast guard law won't work, Filipino fisherfolk say
MANILA, Philippines — A fisherfolk group on Thursday hit Manila's envoy to Beijing for seemingly "speaking for Chinese aggressors" when he sought to assure that the Philippines would not be a target of its new coast guard law.
Some days ago, Ambassador Chito Sta. Romana said he was told by Chinese officials that they would not "resort to force in the first instance" and they are not eyeing on any specific country.
The Chinese law allows its coast guard to fire on or board for inspection foreign vessels in waters they claim to be theirs, as well as to demolish structures built by other countries.
Sta. Romana said that upon the Philippines' objection to the said legislation, "the Chinese have tried to reassure that they will still exercise restraint."
But for fishermen, Beijing could not be relied on any assurance with many incidents of harassment, including the sinking of a Filipino vessel years ago, done by the Chinese.
"He seems defending the obviously stringent measure imposed by China within our marine territory," said Fernando Hicap, national chairperson of the group Pamalakaya. "Only Chinese yes-men would believe that the coast guard law would not target any countries and is not an act of aggression."
Manila and Beijing have long been engaged in a maritime territorial dispute, which peaked in 2016 when an international tribunal rejected China's claims in the South China Sea.
Relations between the two countries have since improved under the Duterte administration, especially at the time of a pandemic.
But at sea, the incidents continued, with fisherfolk having to face the dangers of harassment for merely sailing there.
Just last year, two diplomatic protests by the Philippines were filed over the Chinese coast guard pointing a radar gun at a Philippine Navy ship, as well as declaring a Philippine territory as part of its Hainan province.
In 2019, Beijing sank a Filipino fishing boat, only to be later on called by President Rodrigo Duterte as an "ordinary maritime accident."
Early this month, a report by News5 had detailed as well that fishermen in Pangasinan were forced to leave the Scarborough Shoal after being sent away by the Chinese.
"With this legislation, Chinese coast guard can just shoot anyone, including Filipino fishers, in the territorial waters that they illegally claim and occupy," Hicap added. "We denounce Ambassador Sta. Romana for justifying this law. He should've acted against it prior to the enactment by publicly denouncing and protesting it."
The Philippines in late January filed a diplomatic protest against the Chinese law, which Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. described as a "verbal threat of war to any country" that would defy it.
Maritime experts and lawmakers have also allayed concerns over it, urging for a strong messaging from government over Beijing's continued aggressiveness in the waters as well as its disregard for the Hague ruling. — Christian Deiparine with reports from Alexis Romero/The STAR
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