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Category: Maritime Affairs

A test in finding sanity amid Duterte’s incoherence

President Duterte talks about the sinking of Filipino fishing boat by Chinese vessel during during the 121st Philippine Navy Anniversary at the Naval Base Heracleo Alano in Cavite City on June 17, 2019. Malacañang photo by Simeon Celi, Jr.

President Duterte dismissed what happened in Reed Bank on June 9 where a Chinese fishing boat “Yuemaobinyu 42212” rammed a Philippine fishing boat, F/B Gimver 1 which threw the 22 Filipino fishermen into the waters in the darkness of the night until they were rescued by a Vietnamese fishing boat, as just a “maritime incident.”

“Banggaan lang ng barko ‘yan,”
Duterte said at the121ST anniversary of the Philippine at Sangley Sangley Point in Cavite City, Monday, finally breaking his eight-day silence that has riled up concerned citizens over what many perceive as his subservience to China.

Yet he also said he does not want to issue a statement “because there is no investigation and there is no result.”

I’m reproducing here portions of his speech about the incident. This is a test in finding sanity amid the incoherence:

What’s going on in Benham Rise?

The decision of the Duterte government to allow Chinese scientists to do research in Benham Rise, renamed Philippine Rise, a 13-million-hectare undersea region off the provinces of Isabela and Aurora has generated heated discussions layered with patriotism, nationalism, ignorance, sinophobia – all combined.

In 2009, the United Nations Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) declared that Benham Rise is part of the Philippine’s extended continental shelf (350 nautical miles from the shores).

UNCLOS’s declaration gave the Philippines sovereign rights over the area but not sovereignty – the supreme right of the state to command obedience within the area.

As explained by Senior Associate Justice Antonio T. Carpio, the Philippine’s sovereign rights over Benham Rise includes “to explore and exploit the oil, gas and other mineral resources in Benham Rise, and even the sedentary species (e.g., abalone, clams and oysters.”

Carpio also said, “Other states, like China, have the right to conduct in Benham Rise (1) fishery research because the fish in the ECS belongs to mankind; (2) surveys on water salinity and water currents because the water column in the ECS belongs to mankind; and (3) depth soundings for navigational purposes because there is freedom of navigation in the ECS. If the Chinese vessels were looking for submarine passages and parking spaces, that would be part of freedom of navigation and the Philippines has no reason to complain.”

Amid the controversy, the University of the Philippines Marine Science Institute issued the following statement explaining the project they are doing with Chinese scientists. The statement is a bit long but I deemed it right to give to you in its entirety for us to better understand the project:

Why the Philippines did not build lighthouses in Spratlys

Long before China built lighthouses in reefs they are occupying in the disputed Spratlys, the Philippine government under President Fidel Ramos had planned to build lighthouses in Reed Bank and two other reefs but inter-government wrangling over money stalled the project until it was overtaken by events.

Last Tuesday, China announced its plan to construct lighthouses in two reefs in Spratlys which it calls Nansha Islands.

Groundbreaking ceremony for the construcion of Lighthouses in Huayang Reef and Chigua Reef. Xinhua photo.
Groundbreaking ceremony for the construcion of Lighthouses in Huayang Reef and Chigua Reef. Xinhua photo.

A news item in Xinhua, a Chinese news agency, China to Build Large Lighthouses in South China Sea said, “China’s Ministry of Transport (MOT) on Tuesday hosted a groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of two lighthouses on Huayang Reef and Chigua Reef of China’s Nansha Islands.

Reality check in the Spratlys

PH-occupied Pag-asa island in Kalayaan Island Group
Heaven forbid, but in case there’s a shooting war in the disputed islands of the Spratlys, don’t expect the United States military to come to the aid of the Philippines, South China Sea experts said.

I asked the question if the United States military would enter the picture in case of an armed conflict in the South China Sea in the light of the excitement of some Philippine officials and media over the statement of U.S. State Secretary Hillary and U.S. Ambassador Harry Thomas about continuing to work with the Philippines on all issues including related to the South China Sea conflict and stands by the Philippine “by our commitment under the Mutual Defense Treaty.”

A seafarer’s suggestion to avoid maritime tragedies

Sea tragedies have become become common occurrences during the holiday season when city folks go home to the province to spend Christmas with families and relatives.

We never learn our lesson.Every tragedy, we bewail the overloading, the poor vessel maintenance and the questionable capabilities of the crew. But after the stories have ceased to be headline news, we go back to our usual slipshod “bahala na” attitude until the next tragedy.

The past week has seen two sea tragedies that claimed hundred of lives caused miseries to families in this supposedly season of joy.