Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, November 12) – The China Coast Guard’s (CCG) continued harassment of Filipino vessels and deliberate violation of maritime law casts doubt on its identity as a coast guard organization, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said.
The CCG on Friday again used water cannon to drive away a Philippine vessel on a resupply mission to the BRP Sierra Madre outpost on Ayungin Shoal in the West Philippine Sea. Chinese ships also put two other Filipino boats in danger with reckless maneuvers.
The largest swarm of 38 Chinese vessels was monitored in the vicinity of the Ayungin Shoal during the recent resupply mission.
READ: PCG: Largest swarm of 38 Chinese ships observed during latest Ayungin resupply mission
“The systematic and consistent manner in which the CCG vessels do not align with the universally accepted behavior of a coast guard,” PCG Commandant Admiral Ronnie Gavan told the media in a Saturday briefing.
“Ironically, they are supposed to ensure safety of life at sea, but they are the one that deliberately violate the Convention on the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea, 1972 (COLREG) that the People’ s Republic of China is also a signatory state,” he added.
The PCG in October said China broke three rules under COLREG when CCG vessels collided with Filipino boats conducting a routine resupply mission to BRP Sierra Madre.
These are the rules on the responsibility to avoid collision at sea, that ships must use all available means to determine if risk of collision exists, and that one vessel must keep out of the way of another if the latter has right of way.
Gavan said the CCG’s “illegal and irresponsible” behavior puts into question its narrative of law enforcement and its identity as a coast guard organization.
