ADVERTISEMENT
Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider House West Philippine Sea Bloc slams latest Chinese aggression in Scarborough, Escoda shoals

House West Philippine Sea Bloc slams latest Chinese aggression in Scarborough, Escoda shoals

Published Oct 15, 2025 11:57 am

At A Glance

  • The West Philippine Sea (WPS) Bloc in the House of Representatives has strongly condemned the latest act of intimidation conducted by vessels of the Chinese Coast Guard (CCG), the People's Liberation Army Navy, and their maritime militia at Bajo de Masinloc (Scarborough Shoal) and Escoda Shoal in the WPS.
(Unsplash)
(Unsplash)


The West Philippine Sea (WPS) Bloc in the House of Representatives has strongly condemned the latest act of intimidation conducted by vessels of the Chinese Coast Guard (CCG), the People’s Liberation Army Navy, and their maritime militia at Bajo de Masinloc (Scarborough Shoal) and Escoda Shoal in the WPS.
The bloc, composed of Mamamayang Liberal (ML) Party-list Rep. Leila de Lima, Dinagat Island lone district Rep. Kaka Bag-ao, Albay 1st district Rep. Krisel Lagman, and Akbayan Party-list Reps. Chel Diokno, Perci Cendaña, and Dadah Ismula called out the foreign vessels' actions last Monday, Oct. 13.
They said that in both locations, Chinese vessels harassed and conducted blocking maneuvers against our Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) and Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) vessels who were conducting a mission to distribute supplies to Filipino fisherfolk in those areas.
"China's flimsy excuse that their harassment is to protect their 'environmental reserve' is ludicrous. China's illegal occupation and reclamation in the WPS is solely responsible for the destruction of  marine life and ecology in the area," the bloc said in a joint statement.
"These reckless and dangerous actions have risked the lives of our frontline personnel and our fisherfolk," they said.
Bajo de Masinloc and Escoda Shoal are both traditional fishing grounds and are well within the Philippines' Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). "Our fisherfolk and frontliners, or any Filipino for that matter, has the right to safely navigate through our EEZ free from intimidation," the House members stressed.
They further said that these actions also exhibit a worrying pattern of abuse. "These acts are not new. China’s brazen methods show how it wishes to impose its hegemony in the WPS."
"China’s actions and display of brute force are careful and calculated. These are aimed to undermine and disregard international law. These acts are in open defiance of international law particularly the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and the 2016 Arbitral Award that affirmed Philippine sovereign rights within our EEZ," the bloc further said.
At any rate, the bloc said that China's methods "will ultimately fail".
"China’s bullying and intimidation only serve to further unify our nation to stand for our sovereignty. China’s defiance of international law and their hostile actions will be met with an equally defiant but peaceful response from Filipinos," the solons said.
"Amid the continued harassment and intimidation perpetrated by China, the WPS Bloc stands firm with our brave fisherfolk and coastal residents, who continue to bear the brunt of Beijing’s unlawful and coercive behavior in our own waters," they said.
"We likewise extend our unwavering support to the [PCG], the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), and all other frontliners who defend our sovereignty and safeguard the rights of the Filipino people in the [WPS]. We will work with our members in both Houses of Congress to ensure that our coastal communities and our [WPS] frontliners receive the commensurate support from our government to face the harassment from China," the solons said.
ADVERTISEMENT
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1561_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1562_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1563_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}

{{ articles_filter_1564_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.mb-article-details { position: relative; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview, .mb-article-details .article-body-summary{ font-size: 17px; line-height: 30px; font-family: "Libre Caslon Text", serif; color: #000; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview iframe , .mb-article-details .article-body-summary iframe{ width: 100%; margin: auto; } .read-more-background { background: linear-gradient(180deg, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0) 13.75%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0.8) 30.79%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000) 72.5%); position: absolute; height: 200px; width: 100%; bottom: 0; display: flex; justify-content: center; align-items: center; padding: 0; } .read-more-background a{ color: #000; } .read-more-btn { padding: 17px 45px; font-family: Inter; font-weight: 700; font-size: 18px; line-height: 16px; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle; border: 1px solid black; background-color: white; } .hidden { display: none; }
function initializeAllSwipers() { // Get all hidden inputs with cms_article_id document.querySelectorAll('[id^="cms_article_id_"]').forEach(function (input) { const cmsArticleId = input.value; const articleSelector = '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .body_images'; const swiperElement = document.querySelector(articleSelector); if (swiperElement && !swiperElement.classList.contains('swiper-initialized')) { new Swiper(articleSelector, { loop: true, pagination: false, navigation: { nextEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-next', prevEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-prev', }, }); } }); } setTimeout(initializeAllSwipers, 3000); const intersectionObserver = new IntersectionObserver( (entries) => { entries.forEach((entry) => { if (entry.isIntersecting) { const newUrl = entry.target.getAttribute("data-url"); if (newUrl) { history.pushState(null, null, newUrl); let article = entry.target; // Extract metadata const author = article.querySelector('.author-section').textContent.replace('By', '').trim(); const section = article.querySelector('.section-info ').textContent.replace(' ', ' '); const title = article.querySelector('.article-title h1').textContent; // Parse URL for Chartbeat path format const parsedUrl = new URL(newUrl, window.location.origin); const cleanUrl = parsedUrl.host + parsedUrl.pathname; // Update Chartbeat configuration if (typeof window._sf_async_config !== 'undefined') { window._sf_async_config.path = cleanUrl; window._sf_async_config.sections = section; window._sf_async_config.authors = author; } // Track virtual page view with Chartbeat if (typeof pSUPERFLY !== 'undefined' && typeof pSUPERFLY.virtualPage === 'function') { try { pSUPERFLY.virtualPage({ path: cleanUrl, title: title, sections: section, authors: author }); } catch (error) { console.error('ping error', error); } } // Optional: Update document title if (title && title !== document.title) { document.title = title; } } } }); }, { threshold: 0.1 } ); function showArticleBody(button) { const article = button.closest("article"); const summary = article.querySelector(".article-body-summary"); const body = article.querySelector(".article-body-preview"); const readMoreSection = article.querySelector(".read-more-background"); // Hide summary and read-more section summary.style.display = "none"; readMoreSection.style.display = "none"; // Show the full article body body.classList.remove("hidden"); } document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", () => { let loadCount = 0; // Track how many times articles are loaded const offset = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]; // Offset values const currentUrl = window.location.pathname.substring(1); let isLoading = false; // Prevent multiple calls if (!currentUrl) { console.log("Current URL is invalid."); return; } const sentinel = document.getElementById("load-more-sentinel"); if (!sentinel) { console.log("Sentinel element not found."); return; } function isSentinelVisible() { const rect = sentinel.getBoundingClientRect(); return ( rect.top < window.innerHeight && rect.bottom >= 0 ); } function onScroll() { if (isLoading) return; if (isSentinelVisible()) { if (loadCount >= offset.length) { console.log("Maximum load attempts reached."); window.removeEventListener("scroll", onScroll); return; } isLoading = true; const currentOffset = offset[loadCount]; window.loadMoreItems().then(() => { let article = document.querySelector('#widget_1690 > div:nth-last-of-type(2) article'); intersectionObserver.observe(article) loadCount++; }).catch(error => { console.error("Error loading more items:", error); }).finally(() => { isLoading = false; }); } } window.addEventListener("scroll", onScroll); });
Join Our Newsletters

Sign up by email to receive news.

© 2025 Manila Bulletin The Nation's Leading Newspaper. All Rights Reserved.