Respect civilian mission to Panatag, China told

PREPARING TO SAIL Some of the boats that will be used by “Atin Ito” Coalition for its “peace and solidarity” mission to Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal or Bajo de Masinloc are being prepared at the fish port in Subic, Zambales, on Monday. Organizers say 100 civilian fishing boats are expected to join the voyage on May 15 despite reports that Chinese vessels will try to block them. —Richard A. Reyes

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine government on Monday cautioned China against blocking a civilian mission at Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal intended to uphold the country’s sovereignty over the West Philippine Sea (WPS).

The “Atin Ito” (This Is Ours) Coalition led by activist group Akbayan plans to conduct a civilian mission on Wednesday until Friday, to provide fuel and other essential supplies to fishermen outside the shoal, also known as Bajo de Masinloc.

Maritime expert Ray Powell, in a post on X on Monday, warned that China would send a “huge force to blockade” Scarborough Shoal, consisting of four China Coast Guard (CCG) ships and 26 large maritime militia vessels — “not counting ‘dark’ vessels” or ships that are not easily tracked.

READ: China harasses more PH boats; Christmas convoy to WPS aborted

“This will be by far the largest blockade I’ll have ever tracked at Scarborough,” said Powell, director of maritime transparency project SeaLight of Stanford University’s Gordian Knot Center for National Security Innovation.

At Monday’s Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon press briefing, Jonathan Malaya, spokesperson for the National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea, said, “Perhaps our appeal to the People’s Republic of China is to respect the freedom of navigation of the vessels involved in this mission because they are civilians. They are not in any way connected to the government.”

READ: AFP spots 5 CCG ships, 18 militia boats in Bajo de Masinloc

“We ask our countrymen to pray for the success of this mission — a civilian mission — and we call on China to respect this nature of civilian mission by not interfering with their voyage,” he added.

He also noted that “those involved here are… notable personalities in our country. They can check and recheck [their background] to know that these are civilian vessels who will sail to Bajo de Masinloc, so I don’t think it will be good for [China] if something happens.”

Atin Ito’s supply mission is its second, after a “Christmas convoy” last year to Ayungin (Second Thomas) Shoal was aborted, amid the presence and “shadowing” of CCG ships.

As a civilian undertaking, the mission has all the right to bring on board foreign observers, Malaya said.

Yet despite his emphasis on the upcoming voyage being civilian in character, Malaya also noted that its organizers have reached out to the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) on discussing possible security protocols.

“The government has the responsibility to ensure maritime safety. We need to make sure that our countrymen who are joining this mission and the foreign nationals that they have invited will be secured during the civilian mission since that is within the West Philippine Sea, our 200 nautical-mile exclusive economic zone,” he said.

According to him, the convoy would be made up of “two to five” larger fishing vessels accompanied by more than 200 small fishing boats from Zambales province.

Rafaela David, co-convenor of the Atin Ito coalition, said in a statement: “We strongly affirm that our upcoming civilian supply mission to the West Philippine Sea is a legitimate exercise of Filipino citizens’ right to movement within our own territory.”

David pointed out that the mission is based on international law and “aimed at asserting our sovereign rights.”

As for the anticipated presence of Chinese vessels, she said this was “lamentable, but not surprising.”

“It only underscores the urgency of civilianizing the area in response to China’s militarization,” David said.

“China’s actions are failing to intimidate Filipinos,” she said. “Instead, they are only uniting us and inspiring us to go further in defending our rights.”

Traditional fishing ground

The three-day mission seeks to conduct a “peace and solidarity regatta” within the country’s exclusive economic zone.

The coalition said it would also place buoys with “WPS, Atin Ito!” markers.

The mission also seeks to document the presence and possible harassment of Chinese vessels.

Leonardo Cuaresma, president of the New Masinloc Fishermen Association, said this was the first in a long time that their members would return to Scarborough after years of harassment by the Chinese coast guard.

Although he acknowledged that this mission could not entirely prevent Chinese aggression, it would embolden fishermen to venture again to their traditional fishing ground.

“The supply mission is a big deal for fishermen…. It is also important for them to feel that they are supported even by fishermen like us who have never been back there,” Cuaresma told the Inquirer.

He said he and other fishermen continue to hope that Chinese harassment would end soon.

“We would be thankful if that happened because the destruction of our natural resources will [stop], and we know that there is a possibility that the fish [stock] will increase again,” he said.

The mission coincides with Farmers’ and Fishermen’s Month, which then President Corazon Aquino declared in 1989 through Proclamation No. 393.