The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) discovered 13 allegedly undocumented Chinese nationals and a uniform resembling Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) aboard a dredger vessel anchored in Mariveles, Bataan on Tuesday, Nov. 26.
Commodore Jay Tarriela, PCG spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea, identified the undocumented foreigners as Luo Xian Ming, 56; Jiang Hai Gng, 48; Chen Yu, 40; Zhu Zhengli, 59; Zhou Zhi, 48; Zhou Chan Ggui, 51; Li Chun Liang, 45; Gong Qing Shan, 48; Wang Yu Man, 51; Wei Xue Yu, 49; Zhou Jib In, 49; Cheng, Qing, Yu, 48; and Hua Ming Qing, 50.
He said that “Harvest 89,” a dredger vessel, was supposed to leave Mariveles en route to its next port of call in San Felipe, Zambales for dredging operations when one of its agents blocked personnel of Coast Guard Sub-Station (CGSS) Limay who were about to inspect the ship.
The incident occurred around “noontime” Tuesday.
“Around noon yesterday (Tuesday), the agent of Harvest 89 notified the PCG of the vessel's upcoming departure to its next port of call in San Felipe, Zambales, for dredging operations. However, when the PCG attempted to board the vessel for a Pre-Departure Inspection and to secure the Master's Declaration of Safe Departure (MDSD), the agent denied entry, claiming that all necessary documentation was in order,” Tarriela said in a statement on Wednesday, Nov. 27.
This prompted the CGSS Limay to perform a more detailed inspection.
When the coast guardians finally boarded the vessel upon negotiation, they discovered nine allegedly undocumented Chinese crew members “all without proper documentation.”
A follow-up investigation resulted to the discovery of four more allegedly undocumented Chinese hiding in the ship.
According to the PCG, the manifest submitted to them by Harvest 89 only included eight Filipino crew members.
“Additionally, a uniform resembling that of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) was found onboard, raising significant concerns regarding the intentions of these undocumented individuals,” Tarriela bared.
The PCG has coordinated with relevant government agencies to investigate the circumstances surrounding the presence of the undocumented Chinese.
“Efforts are underway to pursue legal action and ensure the custody of these undocumented individuals,” Tarriela said.
AFP warns against black sand mining in Zambales
Meanwhile, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) said it has received reports about alleged mining of black sand in Zambales which are being shipped to China.
“We are taking this very seriously, considering that black sand and rare earth minerals have military technology applications,” said Rear Adm. Roy Vincent Trinindad, Philippine Navy spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea.
But the admiral said the Navy would defer to the appropriate government regulatory and law enforcement agencies that have jurisdiction over the matter.
“What is more concerning there is not only the extraction of black sand and if confirmed, the dumping in the West Philippine Sea, what is more concerning there is its military application the moment rare earth minerals are extracted,” he pointed out.
Last week, Senator Tulfo flagged the reported black sand mining in Zambales in connection with the reclamation activities in Manila Bay.
According to him, sand are being dug up in different parts of the country such as Ilocos, Cagayan and Zambales by certain individuals.
After that, the senator said that rare minerals are being extracted from the sand and brought to China while the rest are dumped in the West Philippine Sea. He claimed that at times, there are vessels which go directly to China instead of Manila Bay after being loaded with sand from the Philippines.
For the AFP, Trinidad said the government should keep a close watch as there has already been previous reports of reclamation activities in the West Philippine Sea.
“What has been confirmed of the reclamation in the West Philippine Sea is the destruction of the environment because of reclamation activities that destroy the seabed, the corals and other natural formations of the West Philippine Sea,” the two-star admiral said.