Senators on Friday, April 9, pressed the Duterte government to act on China’s recent aggressive actions towards Philippine chartered vessels in the West Philippine Sea following reports Chinese missile boats charged towards a Filipino boat manned by ABS-CBN News crew.
“I am outraged…This latest provocation only proves that China knows she can never win diplomatically or legally in our territorial disputes in the West Philippine Sea, hence, she is desperately resorting to the threat of using deadly force,” Sen. Risa Hontiveros said in a statement.
Together with some fishermen, the ABS-CBN news crew was trying to make its way to Ayungin Shoal where one of the nine Philippine military detachments is located in the West Philippine Sea.
But the Chinese Navy reportedly deployed two missile attack craft to chase down the Filipino vessel in the WPS. Last week, the same vessels were also spotted in Panganiban Reef.
“China is escalating to violence. We will never tolerate this barbarity in our seas,” she pointed out.
“ABS-CBN’s Chiara Zambrano checked their boat’s location, and they were only 90 nautical miles from Palawan. That’s almost just as far as going to Cavite from Tarlac. Clearly, they were within our Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), and yet, China’s war vessels brazenly charged in their direction.
“China should pull her Navy and Coast Guard outside the Philippines' EEZ to prevent any incident that might lead to further escalation in a disputed area that is already a powder keg in the region,” she stressed.
Sen. Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan said the Philippines should act pursuant to its position that the waters in that area are part of the country’s EEZ.
“How? Send more patrols to monitor our EEZ in order to protect our economic rights to the resources in the area,” Pangilinan said in a separate statement.
If necessary, he said the Philippine Navy, Coast Guard, Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR), Philippine National Police (PNP) maritime group should assist in securing Filipino fishermen who want to fish in the said areas.
Pangilinan also said the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) should record the latest incident and make it a basis or part of a basis for another diplomatic protest addressed to China.
“We make appeal to all parties or states to refrain from any action or move that increases the tension in the area. The area is tense already, hence, we should all be careful,” the senator emphasized.