US eyes Filipino fishers as watchers of marine destruction
The United States wants to boost the capacity of Filipino fisherfolk and become the “eyes and ears” in illegal fishing and marine destruction by neighboring nations in the territorial waters of the Philippines in the South China Sea.
According to Jonathan Fritz, principal deputy assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, efforts to counter illegal fishing in traditional fishing grounds, “whether by China or other fishing nations,” would be among the top priorities of the US government in its new round of foreign assistance to the Philippines.
“There are some neighbors, and some more than others, that are basically stealing the fish resources of the Filipino people … so one of the key areas where we will be focusing our foreign assistance is helping the Philippines to better monitor illegal fishing … just being aware of vessels from non-Filipino fishers that are here taking resources of the Filipino people without their permission,” Fritz told a select group of reporters in a roundtable on Thursday.
Part of $63-M aid
This is part of the $63 million in foreign aid that the US plans to extend to the Philippines, which was announced by US State Secretary Marco Rubio in July.
To help address encroachment of foreign vessels into fishing lanes of Filipino fishers, the US will work with local governments and fishers who have experienced the impact of illegal fishing.
“The idea is to use them as sort of the front line eyes and ears, and make sure that what they’re seeing in real time can be transmitted back to local governments and then to the national government here so that there is more real-time information about what’s going on in Philippine waters,” Fritz noted.
This includes keeping watch of movements that contribute to marine pollution and destruction of coral reefs, he added.
Fritz, the second-highest official in the US Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs, is visiting the country to discuss with Philippine government officials partnerships that would help generate more investments, specifically within the Luzon Economic Corridor, as well as capacitate the disaster readiness in local communities often hit by tropical cyclones.
A priority sector in US assistance that Fritz sees would remain consistent is health, including programs for the prevention of tuberculosis and human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immune deficiency syndrome, as well as addressing needs in health infrastructure.
Other key areas to be funded are energy security through more reliable energy sources, as well as road infrastructure within the Luzon Economic Corridor, a trilateral partnership among US, Japan and the Philippines.
