CHINESE coast guard vessels blocked a Philippine interagency team pursuing a foreign fishing boat suspected of dynamite fishing near Pag-asa Island in the South China Sea on Sunday, forcing personnel to abandon the operation over safety concerns, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said.
PCG spokesman Commodore Jay Tristan Tarriela said personnel from the PCG, Philippine Navy and Philippine National Police (PNP) Maritime Group responded to a report of suspected blast fishing near Sandy Cays 2 and 3, about three nautical miles (5.56 kilometers) west of Pag-asa Island, also known internationally as Thitu Island.
The Philippine team left Pag-asa Island aboard several small boats at about 9:50 a.m., but China Coast Guard (CCG) vessels 5102 and 21581 moved toward their path minutes later, sounding their horns and issuing radio challenges, Mr. Tarriela said in a Facebook post.
The team reached the suspected fishing vessel at about 10 a.m. and ordered it to stop, but the boat allegedly ignored the instructions and headed southwest toward Zamora (Subi) Reef.
Mr. Tarriela said CCG vessel 21581 shadowed and blocked the Philippine boats during the pursuit, at one point coming within about 10 yards of a PCG high-speed response boat.
A People’s Liberation Army Navy helicopter also circled the Philippine team four times at about 10:13 a.m., which Mr. Tarriela described as an “unnecessary act of intimidation.”
The team abandoned the pursuit at about 10:23 a.m. for safety reasons and returned to Pag-asa Island at 10:48 a.m. No casualties were reported.
Mr. Tarriela said the operation was a “routine law enforcement operation” against destructive fishing and “was not directed at any country.”
He accused the Chinese coast guard of allowing the suspected violator to escape, adding that it had no law enforcement authority in Philippine territorial waters around Pag-asa Island.
“The CCG did not protect the marine environment,” he said. “It made it easier for a suspected violator to escape.”
Mr. Tarriela also rejected claims that Chinese personnel had expelled Philippine vessels or handled the situation.
“The PCG, together with the Philippine Navy and the PNP Maritime Group, will continue to enforce Philippine laws and protect the marine resources around Pag-asa Island and the Kalayaan Island Group,” he said.
The incident will be documented and referred to the Department of Foreign Affairs for appropriate action through existing channels, he added.
The Chinese Embassy in Manila did not immediately reply to a Viber message seeking comment.
Meanwhile, the National Maritime Council urged China on Sunday to stop “illegal and unauthorized activities” by its vessels within the Philippine exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
The council commended the PCG for responding to Chinese research vessel JIA HAI KE 7, which was spotted about 37 nautical miles northwest of Itbayat, Batanes, within the Philippine EEZ.
The council said the incident underscored the importance of sustained maritime monitoring and coordination among government agencies, stressing that protecting Philippine maritime rights “does not require unnecessary confrontation.”
It also urged China to comply with its obligations under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, citing the 2016 arbitral ruling that upheld Philippine sovereign rights and jurisdiction over marine scientific research within its EEZ. — Pexcel John Bacon