BEIJING - China declared on Wednesday that it has “goodwill arrangements” for fishing in the South China Sea, as it responded to reports of Philippine commercial vessels in disputed waters.
Civilians on board Philippine fishing boats sailed on Wednesday towards a China-controlled reef to distribute provisions to Filipino fishermen and assert their rights to the disputed waterway.
“The island is our territory and we have indisputable sovereignty,” said a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson. “We have goodwill arrangements on fishing practices.”
The Philippines has sent three coast guard vessels to ensure the safety of the civilian flotilla sailing to the shoal where Manila and Beijing have been embroiled in heated stand-offs.
The three-day mission to hand out provisions for fishermen anchored at the contested Scarborough Shoal is being led by a group called Atin Ito (This is Ours), along with five commercial fishing vessels, organisers said. Around 100 smaller fishing boats also joined the initial part of the trip.
The coast guard was not part of the civilian mission that sailed on Wednesday, but it would provide safety and security for the civilian volunteers, Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) spokesman Jay Tarriela told reporters.
A PCG aircraft has also been deployed to monitor the situation at Scarborough Shoal, he said.
The Chinese state broadcaster CCTV has reported that the Chinese Coast Guard recently held routine drills at the shoal.
Atin Ito led a similar mission in December to deliver supplies to troops stationed at Second Thomas Shoal, but it cut short its journey due to what it described as shadowing and harassment by Chinese coast guard ships.
Located inside Manila’s exclusive economic zone, the Scarborough Shoal is coveted for its bountiful fish stocks and a stunning turquoise lagoon that provides safe haven for vessels during storms.
It was seized by China in 2012 after a standoff with the Philippines, and Beijing has since maintained a constant deployment of coast guard and fishing trawlers, some accused by Manila of being maritime militia.
China has not acknowledged the presence of militia in the South China Sea.
“China’s actions in the West Philippine Sea reveal not strength, but a glaring weakness,” Rafaela David, a co-convenor of Atin Ito, said in a statement.
“When it resorts to intimidating small, civilian fishing vessels with military might, it showcases a narrative built on fear rather than legitimate authority.”
The West Philippine Sea (WPS) is Manila’s term for waters in the South China Sea that fall within its 200-nautical mile exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
China claims almost all the South China Sea, including parts claimed by the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam.
A 2016 ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration, in a case brought by the Philippines, found that China’s sweeping claims have no legal or historical basis. Beijing has ignored the ruling.