MANILA, Philippines - Only a modernized military can stop
China from bullying the Philippines over the Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal
and other disputed areas in the West Philippine Sea, Defense Secretary
Voltaire Gazmin said on Tuesday.
Gazmin said the government through the Department of
Foreign Affairs (AFP) has been exhausting all means for a peaceful
resolution and enforcement of maritime laws but China has remained
uncooperative.
“Well, the third option is a credible deterrence: upgrade
the capability of our Armed Forces. But again, this is not directed
towards to China or any of the countries in the region; this is for our
protection to make sure that our laws are enforced and we are able to
protect our territorial waters,” Gazmin said.
The commander of the Northern Luzon Command (NOLCOM), Lt.
Gen. Anthony Alcantara, visited Monday the officers and crew of the
Philippine’s biggest warship, BRP Gregorio del Pilar, currently on dock and waiting for mission order from higher-ups at the Poro Point in La Union.
“It was just a normal visit to our troops in that area
especially our Navy men assigned at the BRP del Pilar. I just relayed to
them orders from higher-ups and I’m not at liberty to divulge it to the
media because it’s all operational,” Alcantara said.
Gazmin lamented that China seems to prefer bullying its
neighbors such as the Philippines rather than resolve the issue lawfully
and legally under given laws such as the United Nations Convention on
the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
The Panatag Shoal is about 165 nautical miles of Zambales
province and situated well within the 200-nautical-mile (UNCLOS
provision) exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of the Philippines.
“We cannot resolve this on the basis of the UNCLOS if one
party (China) did not want to cooperate and face the international court
of justice. As far as we are concerned, we are always ready and pushing
for this but they (China) don’t like it. Their (China) only basis of
claiming the area is ‘history’,” Gazmin said.
The volatile situation at the Panatag Shoal is far from
over after the two maritime surveillance vessels (84 and 71) of China
returned to the area last Sunday and was joined by another fishing
vessel Monday.
Two ships of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) and MY
Sarangani, a private ship manned by a French team conducting
archeological research, were also in the area.
A Chinese aircraft buzzed the Philippine vessels.
“An aircraft buzzed over our vessels. We are certain that
this was a Chinese aircraft. The incident was yesterday afternoon
(Monday). We will have to get into specifics,” Gazmin said.
Last Friday, the two Chinese maritime surveillance ships
helped eight fishing vessels leave the area with their illegal harvest
of giant clams, corals and different endangered marine species after the
BRP del Pilar pulled out from the area.
The Philippine warship had cornered the 8 Chinese fishing
vessels in Tuesday last week but it was blocked by the two maritime
surveillance vessels from arresting the Chinese poachers, triggering the
four-day standoff.
Standing orders: assert sovereignty at all times
Meanwhile, Gazmin said President Benigno Aquino III has
instructed the DFA and the DND to assert the Philippine rights over the
Panatag Shoal.
“We’ve to fight for it and we will not leave the area. Of
course, we cannot afford to go to war at this time and therefore we’ve
to continue our talks with Chinese authorities,” he said.
He also rejected unsolicited advice to seek assistance from the United States.
“This is a thing that we don’t have to ask for because the
area is ours. But I am sure that if the standoff will affect their (US)
own interest they will help us. But again we should stand on our own
and right now we are in the process of trying to diplomatically settle
the issue,” Gazmin said.
The longer the standoff at Panatag Shoal, the greater the
impact will be on the economic activity in the area, particularly for
local fishermen, Gazmin said.
“The most affected here are our fishermen because of this standoff,” he said.
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| April 17, 2012 | Article Link
