‘Atin Ito’ coalition to push through with Panatag mission

In a statement sent to reporters on Friday, Atin Ito co-convenor and Akbayan Party president Rafaela David said the group is “not intimidated by China’s latest act of violence and harassment.”

“We are not shaken. We’re like plants watered by adversity – thriving, not just surviving. Like a plant being watered, we grow even more united to fight for the WPS,” she said.

“China’s water cannon attacks in the West Philippine Sea is a broken philosophy. They are not getting the desired results. On the contrary, they only nourish Filipino resolve in the WPS,” she added.

The second iteration of the mission aims to conduct a “peace and solidarity regatta” and install markers or buoys in Scarborough Shoal or Bajo de Masinloc.

Participating in the mission are two main civilian boats escorted by 100 small fishing vessels that will set sail from Zambales.

International observers are invited to join the mission to document the situation in the WPS and witness the challenges faced by Filipino fishermen and frontliners.

Atin Ito also plans to deliver essential supplies like fuel to Filipino fishermen in the area.

Navy spokesperson for the WPS Commodore Roy Vincent Trinidad said the military supports and will help in the civilian mission through monitoring for its safety.

The Philippine Navy on Wednesday said not only 100 but around 1,000 civilian boats should be deployed in the WPS to match the number of Chinese maritime militia vessels in the area.

Meanwhile, China on Friday claimed that the Philippines will have to limit the area where Filipino fishermen could fish and where Filipino troops could fly over and navigate in the Scarborough Shoal.

The Chinese Embassy in the Philippines stressed that it was part of the agreement Manila supposedly entered into with Beijing seven years ago to manage differences over the South China Sea.

In a statement, China said that in 2016, Beijing made a “special arrangement” to allow Filipino fishers in designated waters, except the lagoon of Scarborough Shoal.

The shoal is located within the West Philippine Sea or within the country’s exclusive economic zone, as affirmed by the 2016 Arbitral Award based on the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

The embassy also claimed that Manila agreed that it would not deploy any of its vessels or aircraft beyond 12 nautical miles or its corresponding airspace of Scarborough.

According to the Chinese Embassy, it is now taking action against the Philippines—a move seen by other countries as aggressive and harassing—in the waters because the latter refused to abide by such an agreement, among many others.

The Philippines already “crossed the line,” which Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) spokesman Jay Tarriela “did not shy away from admitting,” the embassy said.

“Over the past seven-plus years, the Philippine side had abided by the above agreements, and fishing by Philippine fishermen in designated areas off Huangyan Dao was not an issue,” the embassy statement said.

However, the embassy alleged that the Marcos administration unilaterally disrupted the arrangement by dispatching “coast guard ships and official vessels to intrude into waters a number of times.”

The Marcos’ administration also “encouraged the Filipino fishermen to challenge the arrangements to help promote its political agenda,” it added.

It also reneged on its own words on the management of the West Philippine Sea and unilaterally abandoned the Gentlemen’s Agreement, Internal Understanding and New Model agreed upon by the two sides, according to the embassy.

The embassy has been citing several supposed agreements that the Philippines has entered into, but it has not shown any document of any of the deal as of the moment.

“China was compelled to take necessary measures to safeguard our sovereignty and maritime rights and interests,” the embassy said. — Rey E. Requejo