Aside from
patrolling the area in and around Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal, the Philippine
Coast Guard (PCG) said it would be on hand to help Filipino fishermen who have
started returning to the shoal after the lifting of the Chinese blockade.
PCG
commandant Rear Admiral William Melad yesterday said six ships would be
involved in the regular patrols – three of which would be monitoring, control
and surveillance (MCS) vessels.
“We will be
changing patrol ships every two or three days,” Melad said. He said the patrols
would be within the country’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) in the western side
of Luzon, where Panatag – also called Bajo de Masinloc – is situated.
Among those
to be deployed is the PCG’s new 44-meter multi-role response vessel (MRRV) BRP
Tubbataha. Also being readied for patrol duty is BRP Davao del Norte, while BRP
Pampanga is on standby.
For the
Coast Guard, there is nothing out of the ordinary in the deployment of ships to
the Panatag Shoal where it has always conducted “regular patrol,” Melad said.
The shoal is
only 124 nautical miles off Zambales and is well within the country’s 200-mile
EEZ.
An
international tribunal, acting on a case filed in 2013 by Manila contesting
China’s massive sea claim, declared the shoal a common fishing ground. Beijing
disregarded the ruling issued last July.
“The mission
of the ship is to patrol our EEZ and to look after our fishermen because the
Coast Guard performs several functions that include law enforcement, it could
also be for search and rescue and assistance,” Melad pointed out.
The Chinese
have stopped harassing Filipino fishermen at the Panatag Shoal since late last
month or after President Duterte’s return from his state visit to Beijing. Both
Philippine and Chinese officials said the easing of Chinese’ hold on the shoal
was a fruit of Duterte’s visit to Beijing.
Duterte and
Chinese President Xi Jinping discussed the dispute over territories in the
South China Sea and the West Philippine Sea but no formal agreement on Panatag
was reached.
The Chinese
took control of the shoal in 2012 after a standoff with the Philippine Navy,
which had tried to apprehend Chinese poachers on two boats. Seized from the
poachers were baby sharks, giant clams and endangered corals.
The
Philippine Navy was forced to release the poachers together with their illegal
catch after Chinese maritime surveillance vessels arrived and made threatening
maneuvers.
The post PCG to Help Pinoy Fishermen Going to Panatag appeared first on Philippine Star.
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