(Inquirer.net photo by Allan Macatuno)
Malacañang on Monday, March 25, vowed to protest any unjust actions of the Chinese Coast Guard if the complainants would present justifiable evidence to back their claim.
Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo responded to a video released by senatorial candidate Neri Colmenares explaining how the Filipino fishermen were mistreated by the Chinese Coast Guard, despite the Philippines’ jurisdiction in the area.
“They have to show proof that is being done now again because if it’s being done, certainly we will protest. We will not allow our countrymen to be subjected to that kind of harassment,” Panelo said as reported by The Philippine Star.
The six-minute video showed that the fishermen from Masinloc, Zambales would normally access the Scarborough or Panatag Shoal, a traditional fishing ground off the coast of Zambales.
However, the Chinese Coast Guard would reportedly seize their catch and drive them away from the Shoal despite having the territorial authority over the area since called Bajo de Masinloc.
The palace spokesman said that such mistreatment is not condoned by the administration. He continued that he was not aware of any reported abuse of Chinese nationals banishing Filipino fishermen in the country’s waters.
Colmenares answered back at the administration’s stand on the said issue. In a radio interview with DZMM, he called out Malacañang’s failure to defend its countrymen against the harassment of the Chinese nationals.
“Instead na depensahan o alamin kung totoo ang nangyari para madepensahan ang mangingisda, ang sasabihin pa, walang proof, hindi totoo iyon, wala namang report (Instead of defending or finding out the truth to protect our fishermen, they said there’s no proof, it’s not true, there’s no report),” Colmenares said as reported by ABS-CBN News.
“Parang ang sini-serve nila ay ‘yung Chinese government, pino-proteksyunan kaysa sa sarili nating mga mangingisda (It seems that they’re serving, protecting the Chinese government instead of our own fishermen),” he added.
The senatorial candidate emphasized that a person’s testimony could be considered legitimate proof to back up a certain claim. He also said that it is pointless for the fishermen to lie about their experiences since they would get nothing out of it.
“Ang testimonya ng isang witness ay proof, ebidensya. Hindi ko alam kung anong ebidensya na nire-require nila (The testimony of a witness is considered as proof, evidence. I don’t know what kind of evidence it is that they’re requiring),” the senatorial candidate defended.
“Bakit magsisinungaling ang mga mangingisda sa amin? Ano ang mahihita nila? Mga ordinaryong tao sila, takot lang nilang magsinungaling (Why would the fishermen lie to us? What would they gain? They’re just ordinary people who are afraid to lie),” Colmenares added.
Colmenares explained that the abuse endured by those fishermen should not be solely mentioned in passing. He urged the officials to come up with a solution to ensure that the fishermen’s lives and livelihood will be protected.
“This is one more proof of the harassment and we are willing to share it with them. The issue here is no longer about anything else, it’s the issue of helping our fisherfolks be protected and their livelihoods be protected,” he said in an interview with ABS-CBN News Channel’s (ANC) “Early Edition.”
However, Masinloc Vice Mayor Daddy Enciso claimed that even the local government officials were not aware that such harassment exists among the fisherfolk. He further noted that it must be a remote incident.
“Wala po kaming napapansin na mga fisherman naming nagre-report sa munisipyo po. So far, remote incident po iyan na nangyayari. Normal naman po ang mga fisherman sa amin (We have not noticed any fisherman reporting to our town hall. So far, what happened was a remote incident. The situation of our fishermen is normal),” he said in a separate DZMM interview.
The palace spokesperson and chief legal counsel said that the administration can only protest to China regarding the fishermen issue despite the arbitral ruling that named the Philippines the country with the rightful claim in the area.
“May magagawa ba tayo eh sila ang may control as of now. ‘Di ba meron silang pwersa doon. (What can we do when they are in control as of now. They have military forces there) We can only protest like any other country like Vietnam,” Panelo said in a press briefing.
“Has any arbitral ruling by this international court been enforced previously? Kung meron may pag-asa tayo, kung wala sa ngayon wala tayong magagawa so pag-usapan muna natin sa negotiation (If there is, we have hope. If there’s none all we can do is negotiate),” he added.
Supreme Court Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio in July warned President Rodrigo Duterte to be careful with his remarks that could possibly waive the country’s rights to the area as ruled by the 2016 arbitral tribunal in Hague.
“If the president says ‘I am setting aside the ruling,’ the doctrine is that that binds the country if it is accepted by China. That declaration is a declaration against the interest of the state and it will bind that state because the president is the representative under international law,” Carpio said.
