"This kind of treatment to Filipinos must stop."
This was the statement of presidential aspirant Vice President Leni Robredo as she condemned the recent "harassment" by Chinese Coast Guard vessels on Philippine supply boats in Ayungin Shoal on Tuesday, Nov. 16.
“Na-harass na naman ang ating resupply vessels sa Ayungin Shoal. Hindi pwedeng maliitin ang mga Pilipino nang ganito. Ang panalo natin sa Arbitral ruling ang sandalan natin para tuloy-tuloy natin ma-protektahan kung ano ang atin (Our resupply vessels in Ayungin Shoal was harassed again. Filipinos should not be belittled like this. Our win in the Arbitral ruling backs us to continuously protect what's ours) ,” Robredo said in a statement Thursday, Nov. 18.
Two Philippine supply boats transporting food supplies to Philippine military personnel in Ayungin Shoal were “blocked and water cannoned” by three Chinese Coast Guard vessels.
Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. said no one was hurt from the incident but the resupply mission was aborted. Locsin also conveyed to China the Philippines’ “outrage, condemnation and protest of the incident.”
"This kind of treatment to Filipinos must stop. is ours as the arbitration tribunal ruled in July 2016," the vice president stressed.
The recent incident, Robredo said, emphasized the need to show a stronger stance in asserting Philippine sovereignty to protect Filipinos’ interests.
The opposition leader bared that she had met with retired military generals prior to the incident, where they discussed major aspects of national security not knowing that the Ayungin Shoal incident took place.
"As our generals put it aptly, the planning horizon for a national security policy and strategy must be long-term for sustained implementation, regardless of changes in administration. Coherence in national security planning and economic development planning is important," she said.
Ayungin Shoal is part of the Kalayaan Island Group (KIG), which is an integral part of the Philippines, as well as the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone (EEZ) and continental shelf, and over which the Philippines has sovereignty, sovereign rights and jurisdiction.