China has lodged a protest to thePhilippines alleging harassment of its fishermen by thePhilippine Navy in a lagoon in its Huangyan Island in theSouth China Sea.
According to the Chinese Embassy in the Philippines, 12Chinese fishing boats were moving into the lagoon to takeshelter due to harsh weather conditions, when a PhilippineNaval gunboat blocked the entrance of the lagoon.
They then dispatched 12 Philippine soldiers to thelagoon, six of whom were armed, and then harassed the Chinesefishermen, official media here reported.
Two Chinese Marine Surveillance ships, which were doingroutine patrol in the area when the incident took place, wereimmediately sent to the site to protect the fishermen andtheir boats, according to a statement released by China’sState Oceanic Administration today.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Weimin said theso-called law-enforcement actions by the Philippine side inthe water of Huangyan Island was an infringement of China’ssovereignty, and violated bilateral consensus on maintainingthe peace and stability of the South China Sea.
He called for the Philippines to avoid actions that couldcomplicate and aggravate the situation. He said the relevantChinese department has dispatched official ships to HuangyanIsland, and the Chinese vessels and fishermen are safe at present.
Countering Philippines claims, Liu reiterated thatHuangyan Island is an integral part of Chinese territory andChina has indisputable sovereignty over the island.
“We urge the Philippine side to proceed based on ourbilateral friendship as well as the peace and stability of theSouth China Sea. We call on them to stop making new troubles,and work with China to create good conditions for the healthyand stable development of bilateral ties,” he said.
According to the administration, all these Chinesefishermen were from the country’s southern province Hainan,and they are currently in safety and emotionally stable.
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