Military encourages Pinoy fishermen to return to sandbars

This photo from the Western Command shows a summary of fishing activities of Filipinos around Pag-asa Island from January 2018 to March 2019.

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine military is encouraging Filipino fishermen to continue their activities at the sandbars near Pag-asa (Thitu) Island amid reports of an increased presence of Chinese fishing vessels in the area.

A summary of Filipino fishing activities from January 2018 to March 2019 released by the Western Command (Wescom), the military unit that covers the West Philippine Sea, showed that only one local fishing vessel tried to stay near Sandbar 3, a traditional fishing spot of locals.

The position of Chinese vessels was not indicated.

“Wescom has been constantly encouraging the local fishermen to continue their fishing ventures in the area. In fact, we are fully supporting the government’s shelter port project in Pag-asa that is being developed to assist our local fishermen undertaking economic activities thereat,” Wescom spokesperson Capt. Cherryl Tindog said in a statement on Wednesday.

Kalayaan Mayor Roberto Del Mundo has claimed that they have been denied access to the string of sandbars by Chinese fishing vessels.

READ: Chinese boats deny Filipino fishermen access to sandbars

The presence of the Chinese boats, he said, has been affecting their fishing activities because they are being blocked as soon as they approach the nearest sandbar three kilometers away, which is known to them as Secret Island.

When he stayed on the island for a few weeks in January, Del Mundo said he spotted as many as 50 vessels on the left side of Pag-asa.

Tindog said they have not received any complaint or report from the fishermen that they were being harassed or driven away from the area.

“Our personnel have also been engaging the fishermen there to know their concerns and if they are being harassed,” she said.

Satellite images released by Washington-based think tank Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative (AMTI) in early February showed that China deployed its navy and coast guard along with dozens of its fishing boats in the past month and a half near Pag-asa Island, likely in response to the ongoing construction of a beaching ramp.

The number of vessels reached as high as 95 in December but it was down to 42 by late January, nearly corroborating with the personal account of the mayor during his recent visit.

The AMTI suspects that the fishing boats are part of China’s maritime militia, intended to stop the development work currently underway on the island, which China claims as its own. /ee