Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, September 24) — The China Coast Guard (CCG) has installed a 300-meter-long floating barrier in the southeast portion of Scarborough Shoal, preventing Philippine fishing boats from entering the area, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said Sunday.
Personnel of the PCG and the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) on board BRP Datu Bankaw discovered the floating barrier during a maritime patrol last Sept. 22.
The PCG said during the routine patrol, the BFAR observed more than 50 Philippine fishing boats at the vicinity of Scarborough Shoal or Bajo de Masinloc. The BFAR provided them with grocery items and fuel subsidies to sustain their operations. However, CCG-3105 vessel initiated 15 radio challenges to drive away the BFAR vessel and fishing boats.
“The CCG crew alleged that the presence of the BFAR vessel and Filipino fishermen violated international law and the domestic laws of the People’s Republic of China,” the PCG said in a statement.
“Three CCG Rigid Hull Inflatable Boats and Chinese Maritime Militia’s service boat installed the floating barrier upon arrival of the BFAR vessel in the vicinity of the shoal,” it added.
The PCG said, according to the fishermen, CCG vessels “usually install floating barriers whenever they monitor a large number of Filipino fishermen in the area.”
“The Philippine Coast Guard and Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources strongly condemn the China Coast Guard’s installation of floating barrier in the southeast portion of Bajo de Masinloc,” the PCG said.
In a press briefing, spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea Jay Tarriela stressed that the floating barrier is a “navigational hazard.”
“Ang tendency, if you’re going to insist on going to the shoal, maaaring kainin ng propeller ‘yung mga net na nasa ilalim,” he said.
[Translation: The tendency is, if you’re going to insist on going to the shoal, the propeller might catch the net underneath.]
Tarriela said underwater cameras showed that small buoys kept the barrier afloat.
He said Filipino fishermen could still fish in areas surrounding the Scarborough Shoal.
