No harassment, but Pinoys barter with Chinese in WPS

MANILA - A Filipino who goes fishing near Scarborough (Panatag) Shoal in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea) clarified Monday, June 11, that they are not being harassed by the Chinese Coast Guard.

Instead, he said they often barter for supplies from the Chinese with fish.

"They (Chinese Coast Guard personnel) do not totally leave without giving us anything. Sometimes, they would give us noodles, cigarettes, and water. Sometimes, when we do not have enough water, we go to them to ask for some. We call it barter," fisherman Romel Cejuela told Palace reporters.

Cejuela, who was presented to the media in Malacañang, said his group's May 20 encounter with the Chinese Coast Guard who "forcefully" took their catch could not be considered harassment.

"I would want to clarify that there's no harassment," Cejuela, one of the three Filipino fishermen presented before the media, said in Filipino.

"Perhaps, they are just forcefully taking our catch. Since we could not understand each other, they would go to our vessel, check our container, and pick the best fish," he added.

Scarborough Shoal, a small ring of reefs, lies about 230 kilometers from the Philippines' main island of Luzon and 650 kilometers from Hainan Island, the nearest major Chinese land mass.

The administration of then President Benigno Aquino III lost effective control of the Scarborough Shoal after an April 2012 stand-off with China, prompting Beijing to block Filipino fishermen from entering the shoal.

In July 2016, the Hague-based Permanent Court of Arbitration ruled that it was illegal for China to prevent Filipinos from fishing in the waters of Scarborough Shoal.

Filipinos are once again allowed to fish around the shoal under the watch of President Rodrigo Duterte,

who maintains a non-confrontational approach in settling the territorial disputes with China.

Cejuela revealed that to date, China is still the one that has control over Scarborough Shoal, noting that he has not seen any members of the Philippine Coast Guard patrolling the area.

"The Philippine Coast Guard does not go there. There's none. We only see Chinese. (But it's better) because it would be more dangerous for us (if the Philippine Coast Guard is also there]," he said.

Cejuela made the clarification after media outfit GMA NEWS reported on June 7 that the Chinese Coast Guard has been habitually asking for fish from the Filipino fishermen in Scarborough Shoal.