Fishermen happy with UN ruling

By: Allan Macatuno, Gabriel Cardinoza - 9 years ago

ALLAN MACATUNO/INQUIRER CENTRAL LUZON FILE PHOTO

LINGAYEN, Pangasinan—Fishermen from this province who filed a complaint in the United Nations to stop Chinese intrusions into the disputed West Philippine Sea are happy over the arbitration tribunal’s assertion that it has jurisdiction over the case.

READ: Key points of the Arbitral Tribunal’s decision in PH vs China case

The Hague-based Permanent Court of Arbitration ruled that the complaint addresses a dispute over the Philippines’ and China’s application of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.

“At least it gave us hope that we would be able to fish at Panatag Shoal again,” Jowe Legaspi, council member of Barangay Cato in Infanta town and also a fishing boat owner, said on Friday.

Legaspi was one of the 16 Infanta fishermen who asked the United Nations last month to direct China to respect their rights to their traditional fishing grounds at Panatag Shoal in the West Philippine Sea.

In a 26-page petition to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, the fishermen said China must respect their right to livelihood and adequate food and their right to life.

“In the first place, Panatag Shoal really belongs to the Philippines,” Legaspi said.

He said his grandfather used to fish without incident at the shoal for many decades.

Panatag Shoal, also known as Scarborough Shoal, is a triangular chain of reefs and rocks surrounding a lagoon. It has a perimeter of about 46 kilometers and an area of 150 square kilometers, making it a rich fishing ground.

The shoal is 240 km southwest of this town. In late 2013, China sent ships to the shoal and stopped Legaspi and other fishermen from using the disputed area.

Deprived of shelter

Legaspi said China’s actions cost them their daily livelihood. Barring them from the shoal also deprived them of shelter during storms, he said.

In Zambales province, fishermen rushed to fix their fishing vessels after hearing about the tribunal’s ruling on Friday.

READ: Small PH fishermen losers in sea dispute

“It’s a victory. We’ve been waiting for this,” Mario Forones, 58, said as he inspected the repairs being made on his boat moored near the Masinloc public market.

Because of the decision, Forones said the province’s fishermen were once again entertaining the idea of returning to the shoal, which is 240 km from the coastline of Zambales and well within the 370-km exclusive economic zone of the Philippines.

Four months ago, Forones considered selling his boat, the FB Marvin-I, because of the uncertainty surrounding the Philippine case against China.

He sold his other boat, the FB Marvin-II, after the Chinese Coast Guard drove Filipino fishermen away from the shoal using water cannon on Jan. 27, 2013.

“In the meantime, I won’t be selling my boat because there’s a high probability that we would be allowed to sail back to the shoal early next year,” he said.

Closer to victory

Vianny Mola, 44, captain of the 9-meter FB Marvin-I, said: “We are closer to achieving the real victory and when that time comes, we can peacefully go back to the shoal and not worry about the Chinese Coast Guard attacking us.”

Legaspi said he hoped the arbitration tribunal would eventually decide in favor of the Philippines.

“I hope it will be over soon. Our fishermen here have been suffering for so long,” he said.

The fishing season at Panatag Shoal starts in February and ends in April. During the rainy months, fishermen fish around the payao (artificial reefs) about 18 km from the shoal.

In an earlier interview, Legaspi said the money they made from fishing in the payao was far less than what they earned from Panatag Shoal.

During one fishing season, they used to earn P1 million, which was distributed among the boat owner, captain and crew, he said.