Pag-asa fisherfolk reject plan to undergo military training as reservists

MANILA, Philippines — A fisher group on Pag-asa Island has thumbed down a recent suggestion from the Armed Forces of the Philippines to train fisherfolk to help defend the West Philippine Sea as military reservists.

Pag-asa Island Fisherfolk Association President Larry Hugo said that it would be “difficult” for them to undergo military training and that he would prefer not to carry firearms.

“It’s just right for us to report on incidents. We’ll just report – we’ll just do that,” he said in Filipino during an interview with Super Radyo dzBB.

Hugo also said the group has not been informed of any formal plans to make fishers become reservists of maritime militia forces. 

Pag-asa Island, which has been encroached by Chinese vessels and militia ships, is part of the South China Sea within the Philippines' exclusive economic zone.  The island is the largest of the nine landforms occupied by the Philippines in the Spratly Islands.

Hugo in 2021 documented evidence of Chinese ships blocking his route to a location where fishers typically go fishing, according to a report by ABS-CBN News' Chiara Zambrano.

The Philippine military is considering the deployment of militia forces in the West Philippine Sea to augment patrol capabilities.

Armed Forces of the Philippines chief Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr. said on Thursday that the Philippines plans to deploy militia forces in the West Philippine Sea to better patrol the disputed waters amid reports of more frequent harassment of Chinese vessels.

Without giving specific details, Brawner said the militia will be drawn from the AFP’s reserve force and possibly among fisherfolk.

“We want to use our fisher folks as reservists, we are going to teach them how to help us defend our country,” Brawner said, according to a report by Benar News.

Beijing has repeatedly refused to recognize the 2016 Hague ruling that invalidated its claims over parts of the South China Sea. Former President Rodrigo Duterte, whose path to the presidency was paved with strong support from police and military generals, failed to tame this stance during his term from 2016 to 2022.