THE Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) on Tuesday issued a radio challenge asking another Chinese vessel to leave its waters near the coast of Zambales province in the country’s north.
In a statement on Tuesday evening, the PCG said BRP Suluan, which replaced BRP Gabriela Silang which had been monitoring Chinese presence within its exclusive economic zone (EEZ) in the South China Sea, issued the radio challenge to China Coast Guard (CCG) vessel 3103.
China Coast Guard 3103 replaced CCG 3304 on Tuesday morning, the Philippine Coast Guard said.
“Despite challenging sea conditions with wave heights of two to three meters, BRP Suluan has maintained close monitoring of CCG-3103, effectively preventing the larger vessel from approaching the Zambales coastline,” it said.
“Furthermore, the PCG vessel has aggressively radio-challenged CCG-3103, asserting that its illegal presence violates the Philippine Maritime Zones Act, the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and the 2016 arbitral award,” it added.
The Chinese vessel is one of several ships sent near the Philippine coast and close to the disputed Scarborough Shoal, which China has controlled since 2012.
Philippine authorities have said the Chinese ships had been sent to intimidate Filipino fishermen from entering the shoal.
China claims almost the entire South China Sea, one of the world’s busiest sea lanes. A United Nations-backed tribunal based in the Hague in 2016 voided its claim for being illegal, as it ruled Scarborough Shoal is a traditional fishing ground for Filipino, Chinese and Vietnamese fishermen.
The Philippine Coast Guard replaced BRP Gabriela Silang, which had been monitoring Chinese presence in the area, with the 44-meter multi-role and response vessel BRP Suluan.
The new Chinese ship deployed within the Philippines’ EEZ in the South China Sea is way larger than BRP Suluan, the PCG said.
“Although this new vessel is smaller than its predecessor, it measures 77.7 meters in length and 10.4 meters in width,“ it added.
It said CCG-3304 was about 194.46 kilometers from the Zambales coast as of 9 p.m. on Tuesday. CCG-3103 was conducting illegal patrols off the coast of Zambales, and was 140.752 km from Pundaquit, Zambales it added.
Meanwhile, CCG-5901, which Manila calls the “monster ship,” was 209.3 km away from Zambales but remained within the Philippine EEZ. It was 35.188 km away from Scarborough Shoal.
Manila has accused China of intimidating Filipino fishermen near the shoal and normalizing its “illegal presence” after Beijing sent the monster ship, the world’s biggest coast guard vessel, into the Philippine EEZ on Jan. 4.
Scarborough shoal, which the Philippines calls Bajo de Masinloc, is 241 kilometers off Zambales and is within its 200-nautical mile (370.4 km) EEZ.
“The Philippine Coast Guard remains steadfast in its commitment to safeguarding the country’s maritime interests and upholding international law without escalating tensions,” it said.
The PCG was under the Department of National Defense before it was transferred to the Office of the President in March 1998 through an order issued by the late President Fidel V. Ramos. Less than a month later, he transferred the PCG to the Department of Transportation and Communications, which was split into two into separate agencies in 2016 through a 2015 law signed by the late President Benigno S.C. Aquino III.
The PCG has since been under the Transportation department.
The agency should require its 4,000 new recruits to undergo a crash course on the newly enacted Philippine Maritime Zones Act “for a deeper understanding of current issues, particularly the conflict in the West Philippine Sea,” Senator Francis N. Tolentino said in a statement on Wednesday.
“This would help them better understand the metes and bounds of our territorial sea, international waters, exclusive economic zone, and so on,” said the senator, who heads the Senate Special Committee on Philippine Maritime and Admiralty Zones. “These are basic knowledge but very important, especially when there are challenges.”
Mr. Tolentino said the PCG has 35,000 personnel. The Senate recently passed a bill setting a three-year fixed term for the coast guard commandant.
The measure, which the House of Representatives has passed, allows the coast guard leadership to carry out its plans and programs for the long term, “which would benefit maritime safety and security,” according to PCG spokesman Commodore Algier D. Ricafrente. — K.A.T. Atienza
