US alarmed by coral destruction in West Philippine Sea

MANILA, Philippines — The United States – through its top diplomat in the Philippines – has expressed alarm over the destruction of corals in the Rozul Shoal near Palawan, widely believed to have been perpetrated by the Chinese.

“Troubling @CoastGuardPH and @TeamWESCOM reports on coral destruction around Rozul Reef and Escoda Shoal. Habitat damage harms ecosystems and negatively affects lives and livelihoods,” US Ambassador MaryKay Carlson said yesterday in a post on social media platform X.

“We are working with our #FriendsPartnersAllies to protect Philippines natural resources,” she said.

On Saturday, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Western Command reported the plunder of corals in Rozul Reef, with the Chinese suspected to be behind it.

On Monday, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) issued a statement expressing serious concern over the destruction of the corals, but without mentioning China.

“We are seriously concerned about reports of the destruction of corals in Rozul Reef, a maritime feature located in the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone,” the DFA said.

The DFA said the Philippines has consistently raised the alarm over ecologically harmful activities conducted by foreign vessels, an issue extensively discussed in the 2016 Arbitral Award on the South China Sea.

“We, therefore, call on everyone concerned to act responsibly and cease all activities that can damage our precious marine environment. The well-being of millions of people who depend on the South China Sea for their livelihood is at stake,” the DFA said.

In Zamboanga, President Marcos said his administration is eyeing a fishing ban in some areas to address overfishing and to secure the country’s fish stocks.

A militant fishers group earlier reported a 70 percent drop in fish catch, citing Chinese harassment as well as the destruction of breeding grounds for fish as main reason.

“Sometimes, you should not catch all the fish so that there will be supply in the next season,” Marcos said in an interview with reporters.

“There are places that should not be regarded as fishing areas because they are for breeding... to increase the population of the fish,” he added.

Marcos cited the need to improve the fishery and the livestock sectors, noting that they are part of developing the country’s agriculture.

“Fisheries form part of our development plan...the catch of our fishermen has decreased because the areas where the fishes grow have been destroyed,” he said.

“After that, we will come up with an area for processing. That is our plan for fisheries,” he said.

Alarming news

On Sunday, Japanese Ambassador Kazuhiko Koshikawa said the harvesting of corals in Rozul Reef is “alarming.”

“Very alarming news. Our oceans are the lifeblood of our planet & coral reefs are its colorful heartbeats. Let’s preserve & protect these vital ecosystems for generations to come,” Koshikawa said in a post, also on X.

“In the territorial waters & EEZ around Japan’s Ogasawara Islands, a large-scale poaching of precious corals by foreign vessels occurred 10 years ago, causing marine environmental & economic damages to Japan, leading to diplomatic issue and strict JCG (Japan Coast Guard) controls,” Koshikawa said, also on X.

According to the Japanese Foreign Ministry, multiple vessels believed to be Chinese coral vessels have been operating since September 2014 in the waters near the Ogasawara Islands.

Yesterday, Philippine Coast Guard-West Philippine Sea (PCG-WPS) spokesman Commodore Jay Tarriela said they have deployed two vessels around Rozul Reef and Escoda Shoal to conduct patrol and make another underwater survey.

“As we speak right now, the Commandant of the Philippine Coast Guard Admiral Artemio Abu has deployed two Coast Guard vessels to conduct another maritime patrol in these two areas,” Tarriela said on Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon program.

The vessels, he said, would also “follow up on the underwater survey, for us to have a clearer understanding of the extent of the damage.”

He said the PCG has submitted reports regarding the coral destruction to the National Task Force on WPS, the Department of Justice and the DFA.

“So whatever legal and diplomatic actions that are needed, I know for a fact that these agencies would do well in performing their responsibilities,” he added.

He also explained that while they have no concrete proof of Chinese role in the plunder of corals, PCG monitoring showed Chinese ships had been around the area for months prior to the discovery of the coral destruction.

“Based on the Coast Guard’s monitoring of the Chinese maritime militia, this has been happening for months already. It was last April when we started, together with the Armed Forces of the Philippines, monitoring the swarming of the Chinese maritime militia in these areas,” he said.

New patrol aircraft

Meanwhile, Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro led yesterday the formal turnover to the Philippines of a Cessna-208B (C-208B) Grand Caravan EX Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) aircraft from the Chief of Joint US Military Assistance Group (JUSMAG)-Philippines Col. Edward Evans, yesterday.

“It will be used for all operations, all types of operations,” Teodoro told reporters during turnover ceremonies at the Clark Air Base in Mabalacat City, Pampanga.

AFP chief Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr. said the aircraft would definitely be used to patrol the West Philippine Sea.

“Yes definitely, this aircraft will boost our capability of patrolling our maritime seas and, as mentioned by the Commander of Western Command (WESCOM), Vice Admiral (Alberto) Carlos, our ability to protect our sovereign rights in our exclusive economic zone (EEZ) depends highly on the equipment that we have,” he stressed.

“So definitely this aircraft will help us, will boost our capability in making sure that we secure our territory and our sovereign rights,” Brawner said.

Philippine Air Force Commanding General Lt. Gen. Stephen Parreño called the new aircraft “a very welcome addition to our intelligence surveillance and reconnaissance capability.”

“It will also boost our capability in missions of law enforcement, terrorism and maritime domain awareness. Sinabi kanina ng ating (Secretary of National Defense) that it will be used for all types of missions depending on the need, and during humanitarian assistance and disaster response,” he added. Teodoro also said the Philippines is now “hearing a chorus of nations” supporting its stand on the maritime row with China.

“Because of the fact that we have international law and order, which includes freedom of navigation and an international airspace as justification for what we are doing, we hear a chorus of nations supporting us because we are in the right,” he stressed.

He said a review of the AFP modernization program is critical. “So this cannot be delayed and we are working day and night to try to establish our own systems and whatever capabilities that we can get from our treaty partners and other allies, we’re trying to converge this into interoperable systems, its critical, highly critical that we get it now,” he added.

“Another national security goal, which is of paramount importance now, is the ability to secure the territorial integrity of our country, to secure our sovereign rights and our jurisdiction,” he emphasized.

“National peace cannot be sustained if we cannot secure our sovereign rights in areas which rightfully belong to the Filipino people,” he said. — Alexis Romero, Evelyn Macairan