Africa-Press – Zimbabwe. China might build a science laboratory at the disputed Scarborough Shoal and invite international experts to conduct coral reef and fisheries research, a leading South China Sea analyst said.
He also called for further measures like boarding inspections, penalties for illegal fishing and barring rival claimants from the area.
Beijing announced on September 10 that it had approved the creation of a nature reserve spanning around 35 sq km (13.5 square miles) at the shoal, which Beijing calls Huangyan Island.
China’s coastguard says a Philippine ship deliberately collided with one of its vessels in a confrontation near the disputed Scarborough Shoal on Tuesday, as tensions escalate in the South China Sea.
The coastguard used water cannons and other “control measures” against the Philippine vessels it said were conducting “illegal activities” in the area.
It is the latest flare-up between the rival claimants to the atoll – known as Huangyan Island in China and Panatag Shoal in the Philippines – and comes days after Beijing announced a plan to create a nature reserve there.
“The China Coast Guard, acting in accordance with the law, took control measures against multiple Philippine government vessels engaged in illegal activities within the territorial waters of Huangyan Island,” the agency said in a statement on Tuesday.
China’s plan to designate the disputed Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea as a national marine nature reserve has drawn strong objections from the Philippines.
The timing of the move hints at Beijing’s growing discontent with its neighbour’s policies, notably Manila’s move to normalise the presence of foreign navies in the region and its warming ties with Taiwan.
To many, China’s latest ploy is a fresh attempt to change the facts on the ground, using environmental rhetoric to consolidate its hold on a flashpoint feature. Manila considers China’s occupation of the reef a red line, so Beijing’s nature reserve gambit may invite a bold reply, further fraying bilateral ties.
Tensions have risen in recent weeks as China stepped up its presence and activities in and around the shoal. This has included disrupting routine Philippine patrols and supply runs to support Filipino fishers operating in the area.
A damaged Chinese coastguard ship (right) is seen beside a Chinese naval vessel after they collided near Scarborough Shoal on August 11. Photo: Philippine Coast Guard/AP
A damaged Chinese coastguard ship (right) is seen beside a Chinese naval vessel after they collided near Scarborough Shoal on August 11. Photo: Philippine Coast Guard/AP
In an incident on August 11, a Chinese naval destroyer and a coastguard cutter collided while trying to interdict a Philippine coastguard vessel attempting to deliver fuel and food to local fishers working these rich fishing grounds.
Earlier this month, the Chinese coastguard fired water cannon at a vessel from the Philippine Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, damaging the ship and injuring a sailor.
These incidents may portend China’s determination to enforce new regulations within its proposed marine reserve. Tensions are also rising at Second Thomas Shoal, a low-lying feature further into the Spratly Islands that houses a stranded naval ship serving as a Philippine outpost.
Scarborough Shoal has long been a bone of contention between the two countries. In 2012, a months-long stand-off occurred when Philippine authorities tried to apprehend Chinese fishers in the area.
Much about China’s marine park scheme remains unclear
Diplomatic efforts, including a US-brokered attempt at a simultaneous withdrawal and restoration of the status quo, ultimately failed, leading Manila to initiate arbitration against China in 2013.
In 2016, then president Rodrigo Duterte negotiated a resumption of access for Filipino fishers. Notably, it was the Philippines, not China, that first floated the idea of declaring the shoal a marine sanctuary. Duterte made the suggestion, likely in a bid to reassert jurisdiction over a feature that has been under China’s de facto control since the stand-off in 2012.
Although this proposal went nowhere, Manila made clear that construction on the shoal would be unacceptable and would constitute a red line, as would any unilateral attempt to exploit oil and gas reserves in Reed Bank, another hotspot in the southern Spratlys.
Preventing Filipino fishers from accessing Scarborough Shoal would also violate the 2016 South China Sea arbitration award, which recognised the traditional fishing rights of Filipino, Chinese and Vietnamese fishers in the area. China may have held off on consolidating its hold on the shoal in past years to avoid upsetting friendly ties with the Duterte administration.
Chinese-built structures are seen at the man-made island on Mischief Reef in 2022. Photo: AP
Chinese-built structures are seen at the man-made island on Mischief Reef in 2022. Photo: AP
Much about China’s marine park scheme remains unclear. Will certain areas be kept open for regulated fishing to accommodate local fisherfolk? Will China erect structures on the shoal, which qualifies as a legal rock entitled to a 12-nautical-mile (22km) territorial sea, but not an exclusive economic zone?
In 1994, Beijing built what it described as temporary shelters for fishers at Mischief Reef, only for these structures to be expanded in subsequent years. By 2014, the reef had been transformed into a massive artificial island, part of China’s so-called Great Wall of Sand across the contested sea.
China’s proposed marine preserve therefore raises concerns. It may compel Manila to consider a suite of bold countermeasures, including initiating fresh legal action, raising the issue at the United Nations, or granting greater military access to the US and other allies. Roiling tensions could also prompt the Philippines to place the South China Sea disputes at the forefront of its agenda when it assumes the rotating chairmanship of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations next year.
Manila may seek to marshal international censure of China’s move and non-recognition of the marine park. Another, riskier, option is to accept the possibility of a limited skirmish to signal resolve, echoing the 2014 oil rig stand-off between Vietnam and China near the Paracel Islands.
Filipino and Australian soldiers fire a howitzer during live fire exercises held in the Philippines last month. Photo: Reuters
Filipino and Australian soldiers fire a howitzer during live fire exercises held in the Philippines last month. Photo: Reuters
Whether these steps would compel a Chinese reversal is uncertain. What is clear is that any Philippine response, and China’s likely defiance, will inject further turmoil into the region, overshadowing the 50th anniversary of their diplomatic ties.
To address the huge power imbalance with China, the Philippines has deepened defence ties with the US and expanded its network of security partners to include Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and several European nations. The growing presence of rival navies in the contested South China Sea heightens the risk of accidents or miscalculations, especially with China closely shadowing combined maritime activities.
Following the recent collision, a US guided-missile destroyer conducted a freedom of navigation operation near Scarborough Shoal. Four days later, the Philippines launched a two-week bilateral military exercise with Australia, joined by US Marines and the Royal Canadian Navy. These drills included amphibious and maritime security operations, with naval assets from the Philippines, Australia and Canada manoeuvring in the West Philippine Sea. The Reciprocal Access Agreement between the Philippines and Japan, Tokyo’s first such pact with an Asian country, also recently came into force.
Planned Chinese-built nature reserve latest flashpoint in China-Philippines sea dispute
Manila’s burgeoning ties with Taipei may also be a factor in Beijing’s increased pressure. Two weeks after the shoal incident, a delegation of Taiwanese investors – including Taipei’s top envoy, Lin Chia-lung – visited the Philippines in August as part of the US-Taiwan Business Council. Lin’s presence elicited a sharp rebuke from Beijing, further unsettling Manila’s relations with its largest trading partner. Days later, a Taiwanese coastguard team also visited.
According to the Philippine Coast Guard, a Chinese warship on Wednesday issued a warning for a forthcoming live-fire exercise at Scarborough Shoal. If carried out, this would only inflame an already volatile situation.
De-escalation is in order, lest both sides inadvertently sleepwalk into a clash. China should reconsider its unilateral marine reserve move or, better yet, pursue a non-prejudicial joint stewardship arrangement with the Philippines, with provisions for regulated fishing.
Absent such restraint, further recriminations could push an already worrying situation to a dangerous breaking point.
Lucio Blanco Pitlo III is president of the Philippine Association for Chinese Studies and a research fellow at the Asia-Pacific Pathways to Progress Foundation.
For More News And Analysis About Zimbabwe Follow Africa-Press
