Aquino wants charges filed vs owner of Chinese fishing vessel grounded in Tubbataha Reef

From the Philippine News Agency (Apr 10): Aquino wants charges filed vs owner of Chinese fishing vessel grounded in Tubbataha Reef

President Benigno Aquino III on Wednesday said the owner of the Chinese fishing vessel grounded in Tubbataha Reef will be charged in accordance with Philippine laws.

"Nung ni-report sa akin ni (Transportation and Communications) Secretary (Joseph Emilio) Abaya 'yung sagot ko yata sa kanya e, 'Grabe naman, katatapos lang ng (USS) Guardian, meron na naman (When DOTC Secretary Abaya told me about the grounding of a Chinese fishing vessel, I told him the USS Guardian had just been removed, another incident...),’" the President said in an interview after leading the groundbreaking of the Capiz Airport development project.

"Ang bottom line d'yan, meron tayong batas (The bottom line is we have a law) -- Republic Act 10067, that states everything that needs to be known. 'Pag pumasok ka within this zone, may presumption na agad na poaching 'yung pakay mo. May kaukulang penalties, may imprisonment, may fine (If a vessel enters within this zone, the immediate presumption is it is poaching. There's penalty, imprisonment and fine for that)," he stressed.

The President said the job of the Executive department is to execute the law.

When asked if the government will press the Chinese government to take responsibility, President Aquino said, "I think 'yung batas nagsasaad na 'yung mismong nahuli ang dapat managot dito (the law states that those apprehended will be held liable). It's a fishing vessel so it will be the owners of the fishing vessel amongst others who will be charged."

The President said that an investigation will also look into the possible liability of those tasked to watch over the reef or whether there is a need to put additional rangers.

"Pagkaitindi ko normally, (may) warning 'pag may lumalapit, tatawagan doon sa guard channel...There's a radio, there's a specific channel that's monitored by everybody," he said.

"Check natin ang resulta ng imbestigasyon… para malaman kung kulang ba ang ginawa ng rangers, or kulang ba ang kagamitan ng mga rangers, para malaman nga kung bakit hindi na-forestall ito (Let's wait for the result of the investigation to determine if there's a need to augment rangers manning the reef or if there's a need for additional equipment)," he said.

President Aquino noted that it is the national interest to preserve the reef "to the fullest extent possible" because of its rich ecosystem, considered as "one of the natural wonders of the world."

He said there is also contemplation to add more lighted buoys and to expand the so-called buffer zone to prevent similar incidents from happening again.

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