By Pexcel John Bacon
A FIVE-MAN Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) team drove away a Chinese maritime militia vessel and 24 smaller boats allegedly fishing near Kota Island in the Spratly Islands on Monday, the agency said on Tuesday.
PCG personnel stationed on Kota Island, also known as Loaita Island, spotted Chinese maritime militia vessel 9622 about 1.2 nautical miles (2.2 kilometers) northwest of the island as it deployed 24 small boats, or sampans, each carrying two people.
The boats spread out at intervals of about 50 yards and were later observed fishing within 300 yards of the island, according to the PCG.
A five-man team from Coast Guard Station Kota deployed aboard a rubber boat at about 11 a.m. to challenge the vessels.
The Chinese vessel ignored radio challenges, although its crew acknowledged instructions to leave through hand signals, the agency said.
“Upon the arrival of the PCG team, the mothership and all 24 sampans immediately withdrew from the area,” the PCG said.
The team returned safely to its station without incident.
The PCG described the deployment of 24 smaller boats from a single vessel as a tactic intended to extend its operational reach and reinforce China’s presence under the appearance of civilian fishing activity.
It said foreign vessels fishing within Kota Island’s territorial sea without Philippine authorization violate Philippine sovereignty, fishery laws and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
The agency also criticized the Chinese vessel’s failure to respond to radio challenges, saying it disregarded basic maritime safety practices.
The PCG said it would maintain its presence around Kota Island, challenge unauthorized foreign vessels and disclose their activities to the public.
BATANES DISPUTE
Separately, the Chinese Embassy in Manila disputed the PCG’s allegations against Chinese research vessel Jia Hai Ke 7, which was spotted near Batanes on Monday.
PCG spokesman Rear Admiral Jay Tristan Tarriela said the vessel was about 37.83 nautical miles northwest of Itbayat and accused it of transmitting false location data, remaining near an undersea cable corridor and ignoring radio challenges.
He said Philippine consent is required for maritime scientific research within the country’s exclusive economic zone under Articles 56 and 246 of UNCLOS.
The Chinese Embassy rejected his interpretation of China’s maritime rights.
“Mr. Tarriela seems to have mistaken a contested ruling for settled law, speculation for evidence, and mere distance for sovereign rights,” the embassy said in a statement.
It maintained that the research vessel was operating within waters under China’s jurisdiction and asserted that the two countries had overlapping maritime claims in the area.
The embassy called for negotiations under Articles 74 and 83 of UNCLOS, citing what it described as an existing consensus between Beijing and Manila.
It also reiterated China’s historical claims in the South China Sea, citing maps depicting its dotted-line claim.
The Department of National Defense, meanwhile, warned against a fabricated letter purportedly signed by Defense Secretary Gilberto C. Teodoro, Jr. and addressed to a person identified as Peter Enminger.
Defense spokesman Arsenio R. Andolong in a statement said the document and its contents were “obviously and absolutely false and fake.”
The department has referred the matter to the National Bureau of Investigation.
“This is yet another episode of foreign interference and malign influence that is intended to discredit the legitimate and lawful efforts of the Philippine government to assert its national sovereignty and territorial integrity,” Mr. Andolong said.