A Chinese Coast Guard (CCG) vessel drove away a Filipino fishing boat while it was in the waters of Ayungin Shoal early this month, according to the Philippine Coast Guard, just days after the Philippines and China allegedly reached an agreement in which China would permit Filipinos to return to their own fishing grounds in the West Philippine Sea (PCG).
The shoal, also known as Second Thomas Shoal, is situated within the nation’s 370-km exclusive economic zone and is located 315 kilometers west of the province of Palawan. PCG declared that it was looking into the incident at the shoal.
It highlighted the testimony of fishermen from Puerto Princesa, the capital of Palawan, led by Lito Al-os who claimed they were fishing at Ayungin on January 9 aboard their boat Ken-ken, when a CCG ship with bow No. 5204 approached their area.
“The vessel maneuvered toward the fishing boat at a distance of roughly 800 yards (730 meters), and launched a rigid hull inflatable boat (RHIB),” the PCG stated in a statement summarizing that incident. The CCG troops on board the RHIB waved a Chinese flag and motioned for the Filipino fishermen to leave the area while also warning them verbally in Chinese. The PCG also released a video of the incident to the public.
“That was the China Coast Guard telling us to get out of Ayungin or Second Thomas. Pity the Filipino fishermen,” one of them said in the video, which further showed CCG 5204 still following Ken-Ken for some time, even after the fishing boat had left the shoal.
The PCG is familiar with CCG 5204 because on January 15, 2020, it conducted joint search and rescue drills with that vessel, which at the time reported as the first maritime drill between Manila and Beijing.
