Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, July 2) — President Rodrigo Duterte will ask for a “continuing assurance” from Chinese President Xi Jinping that Filipino fishermen will be kept safe in the West Philippine Sea following the allision and abandonment of 22 Filipino crew in Recto Bank.
Duterte, who referred to the Recto Bank incident as “a little maritime incident,” is set to discuss the incident during the bilateral meetings with China, Presidential spokesperson Sal Panelo said on Tuesday. He said the issue was talked about during the Cabinet meeting on Monday.
“The President wanted China’s assurance that the rights and safety of our fisherfolk are guaranteed,” Panelo said in a statement.
However, the presidential spokesperson later said that the Philippines will not demand an assurance from China.
“Pag hindi, kahit wala silang assurance, basta hindi nila ginagalaw ang ating fishermen, wala tayong problema doon,” he said in a media briefing.
China recently rejected the involvement of a third-party investigator in the joint probe conducted by the Philippines and China on the incident. Panelo said Duterte is “okay” with the suggestion as long as there will soon be closure to the incident that is affecting the countries’ relations.
On June 9, a Chinese vessel hit the anchored Filipino vessel F/B Gem-Ver near Recto Bank (international name: Reed Bank), leaving 22 Filipino fishermen floating in the open seas. The fishermen claimed the Chinese crew abandoned them following the incident in the contested seas.
An international tribunal ruled in 2016 that China has no basis for its extensive claims in the South China Sea. It said China, by its actions in some sea features within the Philippines’ EEZ, violated Manila’s sovereign rights over the area. The tribunal also ruled that Recto Bank is part of the Philippines’ continental shelf, and that China violated Philippine sovereign rights when it stopped a petroleum exploration there in 2011.
