Chinese fishermen poaching in local waters have been resorting to a dangerous practice long considered illegal due to the dangers it poses on marine life.
The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) said last week that Chinese fishermen have been using the deadly chemical compound cyanide to damage the Scarborough Shoal, also known as Bajo de Masinloc.
The Chinese fishermen use cyanide “to prevent Filipino fishing boats” from fishing in the area, said BFAR spokesman Nazario Briguera during a media forum last week.
The use of the deadly chemical was intentional, he said, even if its use has generally been banned worldwide for decades.
Scarborough Shoal has been traditional fishing waters for Filipinos for centuries, until China declared it as part of their territory by virtue of what they call a “nine dash line” discovered in old Chinese maps.
Few countries in the world recognize the nine-dash line, save for those which fall under the political ambit of China.
Scarborough Shoal is within the Philippines’ 200 nautical mile exclusive economic zone (EEZ), which most of the world recognizes.
Briguera estimated the damage caused by cyanide fishing to exceed PHP1 billion a year, although no formal study has been conducted on the matter.
The BFAR said the use of cyanide in Philippine waters was a “serious concern” since doing so would kill off developing fish larvae and corals.
China has also been found to have destroyed corals in Philippine waters, and the country is mulling taking its powerful neighbor to international court for the destruction it caused.
China, however, denies destroying corals, which are living organisms that provide food and shelter to small fish.
According to government data, more than 385,000 Filipinos rely on the West Philippine Sea (WPS) for their livelihood. They catch an estimated 275,520 metric tons of fish per annum, representing between six percent to seven percent of the country’s fisheries sector.
The BFAR spokesman said it was not the Philippines’ concern if China were to use cyanide in its own waters but use of the chemical within the Philippines EEZ was “a clear case of illegal, unreported, and undocumented fishing.”
Ever since China started to lay claim to Philippine waters, the China Coast Guard (CCG) has been taking progressively threatening actions against Philippine fishing vessels as well as Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) ships.
In recent years, China has conducted various forms of harassment within the WPS, including the use of water cannon, lasers, even a little understood sound weapon that causes temporary disability.
PCG spokesman for the WPS Commodore Jay Tarriela also said that China’s latest action on Philippine waters could be deemed not only as an attack on the country’s sovereignty but also on humanity as a whole.
Tarriela said the entire world could also be affected should China “constantly and persistently” engage in cyanide fishing.
To counteract the mighty Chinese naval force, the Philippines has recently resorted to seeking the presence of the US naval fleet in the Pacific. The US navy has conducted drills with their Philippine counterparts in full view of the CCG.
Whenever the CCG sees the joint US/PH patrols over the WPS, their ships usually keep a safe distance.
During the administration of the late President Benigno Aquino lll, the Philippines took China to the Permanent Court of Arbitration to determine who was the true owner of the WPS. This was in 2016. The global court ruled in favor of the Philippines but China has refused to accept the validity of the court’s verdict. As a result, China continues to build structures in some islets within the Philippines’ EEZ.
