China ships ram, blast water at BFAR vessel
- The Inquirer was on board the BRP Datu Sanday as five China Coast Guard ships fired water cannons and intentionally hit the fishery agency’s vessel six times during its patrol at Escoda (Sabina) Shoal on Sunday.
ABOARD BRP DATU SANDAY, WEST PHILIPPINE SEA—It was as if a typhoon slammed into this Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) vessel after five China Coast Guard (CCG) ships fired water cannons at the fishery agency’s boat for about an hour and rammed it six times near Escoda (Sabina) Shoal in the West Philippine Sea on Sunday.
The CCG ship with bow No. 4202 first fired a water cannon at the port side of the vessel about 20 kilometers from Escoda at 1:46 p.m, but it did not directly hit Datu Sanday.
The water cannon from the same CCG ship finally hit the vessel at 2:13 p.m., two minutes after a CCG ship with bow No. 21551 rammed and damaged its starboard side. The extent of the damage has yet to be inspected by the crew.
Minutes later, the CCG ship that first rammed the Datu Sanday also fired its water cannon at the BFAR vessel’s starboard side.
At times, the CCG ships simultaneously fired their water cannons, targeting the port and starboard sides and the communication equipment of the BFAR vessel.
The crew and media onboard Datu Sanday rushed inside and took shelter as water started to enter the ship.
There were seemingly endless drops of water splattering the ship’s windows that were about to break due to the impact.
“They want us to eventually capsize,” a crew member said while CCG ships fired water cannons from all sides of the ship.
There was no letup in the firing of water cannons until 3:02 p.m.
The ‘worst’ incident
BFAR said the communication and navigational equipment of its ship were damaged.
Some of the windows and ceiling were also damaged and a wooden chair was cut in half due to the impact.
The ship also suffered an engine failure, aborting its humanitarian operation to bring supplies to fishermen at Escoda alongside its maritime patrol there.
“Go away,” A CCG crew member told the crew and journalists onboard the Datu Sanday, as they responded that they were in Philippine waters.
“Stop, stop,” the crew and media onboard shouted back.
At 1:28 p.m., CCG 21511 came 30 meters close with its dangerous maneuvers.
A People’s Liberation Army Navy ship with bow No. 626 and several CCG vessels attempted to encircle and block the Datu Sanday several times even as the Filipino crew issued at least 26 radio challenges, telling the Chinese to “stay clear of our route.”
“Stop these unsafe actions and do not interfere with this legal maritime patrol,” the Datu Sanday crew told the CCG ships. But the Chinese insisted that they were within Beijing’s territory.
While the BFAR vessel was on its way to Escoda Shoal earlier, the CCG ships blasted their horns several times.
A crew member of this ship, who has joined several maritime patrols and has been exposed to water cannon attacks by the CCG, told the Inquirer this was the “worst” incident he had experienced.
“Thank you, Lord!” some of the crew members said as they made the sign of the cross.
China’s misinformation
This ship left the vicinity of Hasa-Hasa (Half Moon) Shoal, which is about 111 km from Rizal town in Palawan province, at about 6 a.m. on Sunday for a maritime patrol to Escoda, which is 139 km west of Palawan.
The BFAR vessel first attempted to reach Escoda on Saturday afternoon but Chinese ships blocked it, prompting the captain to steer the boat back to the direction of Hasa-Hasa.
Reacting to the latest incident, Senate President Pro Tempore Jinggoy Estrada on Sunday urged all concerned government agencies to explore all legal avenues, including the possibility of having an international arbitration to step in, to hold China accountable for its repeated and dangerous maneuvers against Philippine vessels.
“The lives and safety of our fellow countrymen are repeatedly put in danger. This is too much. They are deliberately doing it so we would resort to violence,” he said in a statement.
In a statement on Saturday, the National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea also described as “completely unfounded” the claims that a crew member of the BFAR ship fell overboard and was rescued by the CCG.
“This fake news and misinformation serves as a clear illustration of the PRC’s willingness to distort the truth and engage in disinformation to bolster its public image,” the task force said, referring to the People’s Republic of China.
State media China Daily on Sunday claimed that the CCG took “control measures” against the Philippine vessel that illegally intruded into the waters near Xianbin Reef (Sabina Shoal) in the Spratly Islands.
Diplomatic solutions
Meanwhile, a party-list lawmaker rallied his colleagues at the House of Representatives to call on the government to appoint one spokesperson on West Philippine Sea concerns to ensure de-escalation of and exhaustion of diplomatic solutions for incidents in the area.
AGRI party-list Rep. Wilbert Lee also wants the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) to respond to Beijing’s diplomatic protest over a Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) vessel anchored off Escoda Shoal and seek accountability for the damage sustained by BRP Teresa Magbanua from the ramming by Chinese ships.
Lee filed House Resolution No. 1957 urging the DFA to answer China’s protest, demand accountability for the damaged PCG vessel, and name a single mouthpiece for the territorial dispute in the South China Sea “without compromising any inch of Philippine territory.” —WITH REPORTS FROM TINA G. SANTOS, JEANNETTE I. ANDRADE AND JANE BAUTISTA INQ
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