Taiwanese fined for killing giant clam

ALAMINOS CITY — Come to the Hundred Islands National Park here but don’t kill the giant clams.

A Taiwanese tourist learned this bitter lesson after Bantay Dagat personnel apprehended him for killing a giant clam (Tridacna gigas) off Quezon Island.

Mayor Hernani Braganza told The STAR that Tsoa Kuang-Chih, who temporarily resides in Baguio City, was arrested last Wednesday for violating Section 97 of the Philippine Fisheries Code of 1998 (Republic Act 8550) and the National Integrated Protected Area System Act (Republic Act 7586).

Perhaps amazed by the presence of several giant clams, Tsoa took one of them and ate its meat kilawin-style (mixed with vinegar, ginger, onions, pepper, and salt).

Braganza said a tourist guide had warned Tsoa and his companions that harvesting giant clams is strictly prohibited.

But when the guide left, Tsoa took a giant clam. A boatman, however, saw him and reported the incident to the authorities.

"Poaching na ’yong ginawa niya (What he did was poaching)," Braganza said.

Tsoa apologized for what he did, claiming that he was not aware of the prohibition. Despite his apology, he was fined P40,000.

Braganza said the city government allows tourists to take pictures and touch the giant clams.

"But we let them (tourists) know that they just cannot poach or hunt giant clams, and collect corals," he said.

In the mid-1990s, then President Fidel Ramos, Braganza’s uncle, initiated the seeding of giant clams at the Hundred Islands.

Braganza has made significant strides in realizing his vision of making the national park the "Giant Clam Garden of Asia."

The Giant Clam and Coral Garden off Quezon Island is one of the major tourist attractions at the national park.

No less than 7,000 giant clams are currently being protected by the city government’s Bantay Dagat team and the local police.