Gem-Ver crewman remembers Recto Bank experience through son

SURVIVORS In this photo taken in June, then Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Piñol (center) meets with the 22 crew members of Gem-Ver 1, a few days after they returned to their hometown of San Jose in Occidental Mindoro. RICHARD REYES

SAN PEDRO CITY—The fisherman, who rowed for two hours in the West Philippine Sea in June to seek help for his companions, named his newborn son after Recto Bank, where their fishing boat was hit by a Chinese vessel.

Jaypee Gordiones, 30, said naming his son “Prince Recto Jay,” who was born on Sept. 17, would remind them “of that experience.”

He was referring to the June 9 incident at Recto Bank, a rich fishing ground in the West Philippine Sea, where a Chinese trawler hit and sank Filipino fishing boat Gem-Ver 1.

Recto Bank is within the Philippines’ 370-kilometer exclusive economic zone.

Family in mind

In an earlier interview in his hometown in San Jose town in Occidental Mindoro, Gordiones recalled how he kept in mind his 2-year-old daughter and wife, who was then pregnant.

After two hours of rowing on a paddle boat, Gordiones and another fisherman reached a Vietnamese fishing boat, which traveled 5 nautical miles back to rescue the rest of the 22-member Gem-Ver crew abandoned in the water.

The maritime incident brought to fore the Philippine government’s stance on its claim in the West Philippine Sea.

‘Accident’

In August, the Guangdong Fishery Mutual Insurance Association apologized on behalf of the Chinese ship owner for what it called an “accident,” and asked the Philippines to file a claim for compensation.

Gem-Ver boat owner Arlina dela Torre had asked P2.5 million in damages from the Chinese fishing company.

But Gordiones said the fishermen had yet to get any compensation for the damaged Gem-Ver and the temporary loss of their livelihood.

In September, Shanghai-based tycoon Xue Chengbiao of Shanghai Jucheng Capital Group donated a 10-ton boat named the FB Pengyou to the Recto Bank Survivors Fisherfolks Association.

The fishermen said the Pengyou needed some repairs and fortifications before they could use it for a fishing expedition at Recto Bank. —Maricar Cinco