Foreign ships harass mayor of disputed isle
By Redempto Anda
The mayor of Kalayaan town in Palawan was harassed by two unidentified vessels while traveling with around 200 others by sea toward midnight on Thursday.
The mayor of Kalayaan town in Palawan was harassed by two unidentified vessels while traveling with around 200 others by sea toward midnight on Thursday.
The mayor of Kalayaan town in Palawan, along with around 200 people, were harassed by two unidentified vessels while they were traveling by sea before midnight Thursday, the local official said.
A Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) vessel was expected to arrive at Tubbataha Reef off Palawan Saturday afternoon to assess the damage and plan the extraction of the Chinese fishing boat Ming Long Yu which ran aground in the area last Monday.
The Chinese fishing boat Min Long Yu is still grounded on the north atoll of the Tubbataha Reef in the Sulu Sea but its 12 crew members have been transferred by a Philippine Coast Guard ship to Puerto Princesa in Palawan, the Coast Guard said Wednesday.
The salvage operation for the US Navy minesweeper USS Guardian, which has been stuck in the Tubbataha Reefs off Palawan for over a month, suffered another setback after tropical depression “Crising” struck parts of Mindanao on Tuesday, a Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) officer said.
The American minesweeper USS Guardian, which is stuck on the Tubbataha Reef in Palawan, will be “chopped up” beginning Monday, a Philippine Coast Guard official said Saturday.
The second, bigger crane ship that would help remove portions of the USS Guardian, which remains stuck in Tubbataha Reefs in Palawan, is expected to arrive at the site on Saturday, according to the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG).
The United States said it will continue to work with the Philippine government as it apologized for any damage that its minesweeper has caused when it ran aground the Tubbataha Reef off Palawan last week.
Sailors rescued more than a hundred sea turtles from poachers but Chinese nationals who were allegedly buying the endangered animals escaped, the Navy said on Friday.
The arrest warrants against former Palawan Gov. Joel Reyes and his brother for the killing of broadcaster and environmental activist Gerry Ortega will stay as the Court of Appeals ruling invalidating the findings of a justice department investigation panel is not yet final, according to presidential spokesperson Edwin Lacierda.
Two American soldiers taking part in the annual Balikatan (shoulder-to-shoulder) military exercises with the Philippine military figured in a rumble inside a bar in downtown Puerto Princesa City Friday with local patrons and the club’s staff.
The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) has canceled the Philippine passports issued to former Palawan Gov. Joel Reyes and his brother, Coron, Palawan Mayor Mario Reyes Jr., who have reportedly fled abroad to escape prosecution for the murder of broadcast journalist Gerry Ortega last year.
