President Rodrigo Duterte and his alter egos doubt their own countrymen whose boat was sunk by a Chinese ship in the West Philippine Sea on June 9, 2019
After 22 Filipino fishermen aboard fishing boat Gem-Ver You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now. by a Chinese vessel in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea), they face another collision at home: with their own government.
While the fishermen insisted that they were rammed by a Chinese vessel, President Rodrigo Duterte on June 17 You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now. as a "maritime incident."
At the same time, Duterte's men either refused to adopt the fishermen's statements or contradicted them outright.
The President himself echoed China's foreign ministry, which said on June 13 that the sinking of Gem-Ver You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now. He refused to condemn China – You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now. against the United States, the European Union, Canada, and Kuwait over perceived affronts to Filipinos.
Duterte also You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now. of a joint Manila-Beijing investigation into the issue – which, according to critics, places the Philippines and China in one team against the fishermen.
"Hindi namin alam kung kinakampihan pa kami (We don't know if they're still siding with us)," You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now., one of the owners of Gem-Ver, on June 18.
Senator Panfilo Lacson said Duterte's spokesman, Salvador Panelo, You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now.
"He is acting like the defense ministry of China, or is lawyering for the Chinese crew, because he is finding loopholes in our fishermen's words," said Lacson in a mix of English and Filipino. "His mindset is like a defense counsel entering his appearance for China, as if he was in a courtroom."
Is the Philippine government indeed lawyering for China?
The incident is only part of the stream of a grander issue: the Philippines' rights over Recto Bank.
Duterte himself downplays the Philippines' exclusive rights to fish in the area.
This is despite a 2016 international ruling that recognizes Recto Bank as part of the Philippines' exclusive economic zone, a 200-nautical mile area where the Philippines has the exclusive rights to fish and enjoy other resources, such as oil and natural gas.
Simply put: The waters where the Philippine boat was sunk by a Chinese ship belong to the Philippines alone.
Duterte on June 21 said the Recto Bank incident was not an attack on Philippine sovereignty, but You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now. over the area.
On June 24, Duterte stressed that Recto Bank "has two conflicting claims of ownership," even if a Hague tribunal already ruled, once and for all, that the West Philippine Sea belongs to the Philippines.
In effect, Duterte, like China, was not recognizing the Hague ruling of 2016.
In the same June 24 interview, a journalist asked the President: "Will you prevent China from fishing within our EEZ? Iyong pwede po bang… kasi 'yun 'yung request ng mga fishermen?"
Duterte answered: "I don't think that China would do that. Why? Because we're friends. And they are of the same view that that should not result in any bloody confrontation."
Panelo, interpreting Duterte, said the Philippines "will allow" China to fish in the West Philippine Sea "kasi we're friends naman, 'di magbigayan muna tayo
Experts say the Recto Bank incident could only be a test of the Duterte government's reaction to China’s similar moves in the future. If the government reacts lightly, this could further embolden China to ram more Filipino boats to drive them away from the West Philippine Sea.
You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now.
After 22 Filipino fishermen aboard fishing boat Gem-Ver You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now. by a Chinese vessel in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea), they face another collision at home: with their own government.
While the fishermen insisted that they were rammed by a Chinese vessel, President Rodrigo Duterte on June 17 You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now. as a "maritime incident."
At the same time, Duterte's men either refused to adopt the fishermen's statements or contradicted them outright.
The President himself echoed China's foreign ministry, which said on June 13 that the sinking of Gem-Ver You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now. He refused to condemn China – You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now. against the United States, the European Union, Canada, and Kuwait over perceived affronts to Filipinos.
Duterte also You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now. of a joint Manila-Beijing investigation into the issue – which, according to critics, places the Philippines and China in one team against the fishermen.
"Hindi namin alam kung kinakampihan pa kami (We don't know if they're still siding with us)," You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now., one of the owners of Gem-Ver, on June 18.
Senator Panfilo Lacson said Duterte's spokesman, Salvador Panelo, You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now.
"He is acting like the defense ministry of China, or is lawyering for the Chinese crew, because he is finding loopholes in our fishermen's words," said Lacson in a mix of English and Filipino. "His mindset is like a defense counsel entering his appearance for China, as if he was in a courtroom."
Is the Philippine government indeed lawyering for China?
The incident is only part of the stream of a grander issue: the Philippines' rights over Recto Bank.
Duterte himself downplays the Philippines' exclusive rights to fish in the area.
This is despite a 2016 international ruling that recognizes Recto Bank as part of the Philippines' exclusive economic zone, a 200-nautical mile area where the Philippines has the exclusive rights to fish and enjoy other resources, such as oil and natural gas.
Simply put: The waters where the Philippine boat was sunk by a Chinese ship belong to the Philippines alone.
Duterte on June 21 said the Recto Bank incident was not an attack on Philippine sovereignty, but You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now. over the area.
On June 24, Duterte stressed that Recto Bank "has two conflicting claims of ownership," even if a Hague tribunal already ruled, once and for all, that the West Philippine Sea belongs to the Philippines.
In effect, Duterte, like China, was not recognizing the Hague ruling of 2016.
In the same June 24 interview, a journalist asked the President: "Will you prevent China from fishing within our EEZ? Iyong pwede po bang… kasi 'yun 'yung request ng mga fishermen?"
Duterte answered: "I don't think that China would do that. Why? Because we're friends. And they are of the same view that that should not result in any bloody confrontation."
Panelo, interpreting Duterte, said the Philippines "will allow" China to fish in the West Philippine Sea "kasi we're friends naman, 'di magbigayan muna tayo
Experts say the Recto Bank incident could only be a test of the Duterte government's reaction to China’s similar moves in the future. If the government reacts lightly, this could further embolden China to ram more Filipino boats to drive them away from the West Philippine Sea.
You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now.
