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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider 'Pinalagan ang bully': Barbers hails brave Pinoy sailors who blocked Chinese vessel in Ayungin

'Pinalagan ang bully': Barbers hails brave Pinoy sailors who blocked Chinese vessel in Ayungin

Published Aug 23, 2025 01:08 pm

At A Glance

  • The former overall chairman of the House quad-committee hail Philippine Navy sailors for the bravery they showed in blocking a large Chinese verssel for attempting to go near the BRP Sierra Madre docked at the Ayungin Shoal on Wednesday.
Former Surigao del Norte 1st district Rep. Robert Ace Barbers (PPAB)
Former Surigao del Norte 1st district Rep. Robert Ace Barbers (PPAB)


The former overall chairman of the House quad-committee hail Philippine Navy sailors for the bravery they showed in blocking a large Chinese verssel for attempting to go near the BRP Sierra Madre docked at the Ayungin Shoal on Wednesday.
Former three-term Surigao del Norte 1st district Rep. Robert Ace Barbers said in a statement Saturday, Aug. 23 that the sailors did so on board two rubber boats.
They deserve praise and recognition for standing up with the Chinese boats trying to do unauthorized entry into Philippine territory, Barbers said.
“Dapat lang bigyan ng nararapat na papuri ang ating mga Navy sailors na tumayo at di nagpatinag sa pambu-bully ng mga Intsik na navy. Kahit rubber boats lang ang dala nila, kumpara sa malalaking barko ng mga Intsik, ay pumalag sila,” Barbers said.
(Our Navy sailors deserve proper praise for standing their ground and not backing down from the bullying of the Chinese navy. Even though they only had rubber boats, compared to the large ships of the Chinese, they resisted.)
He said because of the international embarrassment the Chinese sailors suffered when two of their boats, a Chinese Coast Guard (CCG) and Navy boat, collided last week while chasing a Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) boat at Scarborough Shoal, China has reportedly downplayed the incident and just increased their presence and activities in Ayungin Shoal.
The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) is closely watching and monitoring the illegal activities of the CCG and Navy inside the country’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) and one of them is their latest attempt to go near the BRP Sierra Madre.
The BRP Sierra Madre serves as an immobile, symbolic military outpost on Second Thomas Shoal (Ayungin Shoal), a deliberate act by the Philippines to affirm its sovereign claims in the South China Sea and prevent further encroachment by China.
Though it is a decrepit and dilapidated World War II-era ship, it houses Philippine Marines and functions as an extension of the country's territorial presence and a symbol of resistance against China's expansive claims.
For its significance, Ayungin Shoal is among the flashpoint for tensions between Manila and Beijing in the West Philippine Sea (WPS), part of the South China Sea that encompasses the Philippines’ EEZ.
From 2023 to early 2024, Ayungin was witness to tense confrontations between Philippine and Chinese maritime forces, particularly during rotation and resupply (RORE) missions to the BRP Sierra Madre.
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