New Chinese harassment in Scarborough led to bid for UN arbitration - Aquino

From InterAksyon (Jan 26): New Chinese harassment in Scarborough led to bid for UN arbitration - Aquino

President Benigno Aquino III accused China of harassing two Filipino fishing boats in the disputed Scarborough (Panatag) Shoal, allegedly driving out one that had sheltered from rough seas.

Speaking on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Switzerland, Aquino said the two incidents had led Manila to seek United Nations arbitration this week over the territorial dispute over the shoal, which the Philippines also calls Bajo de Masinloc.

Aquino, who did not say when the incidents occurred, said "Chinese vessels" approached to within nine meters of a Filipino fishing boat near the shoal. "While they (Chinese vessels) were approaching, their horns were supposedly blaring at full blast, causing apprehension to our fishing vessel," he said, according to a transcript released by the government on Saturday.

A second boat was driven out by the Chinese shortly after it took shelter near the shoal, he added.
"According to the (crew’s) affidavit, they were told to go back to the rough waters." The shoal, which is near Luzon, has been a source of friction since April last year when Chinese vessels stopped the Philippine Navy from arresting alleged poachers.

Aquino, saying only that the incidents were the latest in a series of assertive Chinese actions in the area, stressed Scarborough Shoal -- which China calls Huangyan Island -- and its surrounding waters are part of the Philippines' exclusive economic zone.

China claims most of the South China Sea, called the West Philippine Sea by Manila, including waters and islands close to the shores of its neighbors.

Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario this week said Manila had taken China to a UN tribunal to challenge its claim to most of the sea, including territory belonging to the archipelago, and would ask the arbitration panel to declare Chinese claims in the area invalid.

Aquino said he could not allow China to claim "effective control over Bajo de Masinloc by ordering our vessels out" as this could encourage Beijing to move into the Philippine-claimed and allegedly resource-rich Reed Bank.

"We are not threatening anybody, but if we don't stand up for our rights, who do we expect will be standing up for our rights?" Aquino said. China's embassy spokesmen could not be reached for comment Saturday.

http://www.interaksyon.com/article/53628/new-chinese-harassment-in-scarborough-led-to-bid-for-un-arbitration---aquino