Unaizah Mae 1, the supply boat that was allegedly rammed by China Coast Guard (CCG) and Chinese maritime militia (CMM) vessels while on a resupply mission to Ayungin (Second Thomas) Shoal in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) on Sunday, Dec. 10, was carrying Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Chief of Staff, General Romeo Brawner Jr.
That's why Brawner could not hide his anger at the Chinese vessels when they fired water cannon and subjected Unaizah Mae 1 to "reckless and dangerous harassment" which led to the collision.
"Noong binangga, noong winater cannon kami, mga ilang beses silang dumaan sa harap namin tapos gusto pa kaming atrasan noong Chinese Coast Guard. Nag-cut sa harap at noong lampas na siya, 'di tutuloy na sana kami eh aatrasan pa kami kaya lokoloko talaga (After they rammed and fired water cannon, the Chinese Coast Guard [ship] cut in front of us several times and when they got ahead, we were about to proceed but they attempted to pull back. What a bunch of fools)," Brawner told Defense reporters on Monday, Dec. 11.
According to a report from the National Task Force for West Philippine Sea (WPS), Unaizah Mae 1 was with motor launcher M/L Kalayaan and escorted by Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) vessels BRP Sindangan and BRP Cabra during the latest resupply mission to BRP Sierra Madre in Ayungin Shoal.
However, Unaizah Mae 1 and M/L Kalayaan were allegedly harassed by Chinese vessels in an apparent attempt to prevent the resupply mission.
The task force said CCG vessel with bow number "21556" rammed Unaizah Mae 1 at the height of the tension. Despite this, Unaizah Mae 1 managed to reach BRP Sierra Madre and Brawner became the first sitting AFP chief to have set foot on the ship.
Meanwhile, the Chinese vessels also fired water cannon at the four Philippine vessels, the task force said. The current was so strong that it caused "severe damage" to M/L Kalayaan's engine and disabled it, while BRP Cabra suffered damage to its mast.
Brawner said it was his own decision to board the supply boat to personally see how the Chinese vessels were behaving during the Philippine resupply mission to Ayungin Shoal.
He said he informed President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. that he will join the mission, to which the Chief Executive agreed and relayed his directive to bring Christmas gifts to the troops. However, Marcos did not know that Brawner will board the supply boat.
Brawner admitted that he put his life at risk when he boarded the Unaizah Mae 1, which could be easily thumped by the bigger CCG ships under more unfavorable circumstance.
"Ganoon naman talaga ang trabaho ng commander eh (That's really the job of the commander), it's to visit his troops even to the frontlines," Brawner said.
He said he wasn't scared by the water cannon and ramming although he was angry at the Chinese vessels for endangering the lives of the crew and other troops.
"Hindi naman pero nagalit ako dahil doon sa ginagawa nila. Sa tingin ko hindi nila alam na nandoon ako eh. Hindi nila alam na ako 'yung sakay kaya't ganun 'yung taktika nila (No i'm not [scared] but I am really angry at what they did. I think they did not know I was there. They did not know I boarded the boat that's why they did that strategy)," Brawner said.
When the mission was completed, Brawner said that he initially boarded Unaizah Mae 1 on its way back to Palawan but he had to transfer to a bigger Philippine Navy ship when they saw a Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) Navy warship approaching them.
Despite the collision and the water cannon incident, Brawner expressed hope that this would not escalate further the tension in the West Philippine Sea.
"I hope not. Kahapon nakita namin napakaraming barko talaga ng Chinese militia, Chinese Coast Guard pero sabi nga ni WesCom [Western Command] commander [Vice Adm. Alberto Carlos] na first time nilang nakita na ganoong karami (I hope not. Yesterday we saw that there were many Chinese militia and Chinese Coast Guard vessels but as what WesCom commander said, it was the first time that they really witnessed that many vessels)," the AFP chief noted.
He suspected that China was preparing for the civilian-led Christmas convoy of Atin Ito Coalition, which apparently failed to push through due to the massing of Chinese vessels.
Accordingly, the first leg of the convoy was Ayungin Shoal but at least Chinese 27 militia vessels, five CCG ships, and four PLA Navy warships were monitored in the vicinity of Ayungin and Panganiban (Mischief) Reef beginning Dec. 9, a day before it started.
Also on Dec. 9, CCG ships fired water cannon at Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) vessels that were distributing oil and other supplies to fishermen in Bajo de Masinloc (Scarborough/Panatag Shoal).
Brawner will meet Department of National Defense (DND) Sec. Gilberto Teodoro Jr. to discuss the course of action that the military will take following the incident.
Meanwhile, Commodore Jay Tarriela, PCG spokesperson for WPS, said the Bajo de Masinloc and Ayungin Shoal incidents should not be seen as an escalation of tension caused by provocation from the Philippine side. China accused the Philippines of escalating tension in the South China Sea due to its resupply missions and patrol operations.
"These operations were not intended to provoke any conflict but rather were routine in nature, with a humanitarian component aimed at supporting the livelihood of our fishermen and the well-being of our soldiers," Tarriela insisted.
"The recent incidents highlight China's blatant inclination to engage in illegal and hostile actions in order to assert their self-serving claim in the West Philippine Sea, based solely on the ten-dash line," he added, referring to imaginary lines used by China as a basis for their expansionist moves in the South China Sea. The previous nine-dash line claim had already been debunked by a 2016 Arbitral Ruling which favored the Philippines' claims in the South China Sea.
"They have shown no hesitation in violating international law and even posing a threat to peace and the established rules-based order. It is evident that they carry out these illegal actions because they believe they can, taking advantage of the perceived vulnerability of countries like the Philippines to assert their dominance," Tarriela said.
"This is the very reason why the Philippine government is actively exposing the bullying behavior of China to ensure that the Filipino people are aware of the challenges we face, he continued.