By Junex Doronio
MANILA — As if playing cat and mouse, eight Chinese vessels were spotted by the Philippine Coast Guard’s BRP Teresa Magbanua on its nine-day patrol of Bajo de Masinloc, specifically in Panatag and Scarborough shoals.
This was revealed by the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) on Sunday 11 Feb 2024), saying the BRP Teresa Magbanua was deployed to Bajo de Masinloc earlier in the month to help secure Filipino fishermen in the shoal in the West Philippine Sea (WPS).
According to PCG, the Philippine vessel “professionally engaged” the 4 China Coast Guard (CCG) and 4 Chinese Maritime Militia ships “reiterating the clear and principled position of the Philippines by maritime law.”
PCG spokesperson for WPS Commodore Jay Tarriela, posted on X (formerly Twitter) that the CCG vessels 3105, 3302, 3063, and 3064 “shadowed the PCG vessel on more than 40 occasions”, at one point being just 176 meters from the Magbanua.
“The CCG vessels performed dangerous and blocking maneuvers at sea against BRP Teresa Magbanua four times, with the CCG vessels crossing the bow of the PCG vessel twice, recklessly disregarding the ‘Convention on the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea’(COLREGS) once again,” the PCG maintained.
(el Amigo/MNM)
