Gordon: China not a reliable ally

Senator Richard Gordon on Thursday doubted the reliability of China as an ally of the Philippines, after Filipino fishermen lost their prized catch to Chinese coast guards who are in control of the disputed Scarborough (Panatag) Shoal.

China’s Foreign Ministry had said it is looking into the report that Chinese Coast guardsmen boarded in May a Philippine fishing boat and took some of the catch, with Chinese Ambassador to Manila Zhao Jianhua assuring that they will be punished if the allegations are proven true.

Beijing, however, maintained that its coast guard vessels were at the shoal to keep the peace and the Chinese Coast Guard “had many times provided humanitarian assistance to Philippine fishermen.”

“You are not a reliable ally or a friend. We are not enemies of China but you are treating us as if we are interlopers in our own country,” said Gordon, an administration ally.

Gordon said Manila should remind Beijing that the ownership of the Scarborough Shoal, a traditional fishing ground of the Philippines, China, and Vietnam, is still being disputed.

‘Policy of appeasement’

On the other hand, Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon urged the Duterte administration to review its “policy of appeasement” on China, saying such a policy does not translate into better economic and trade relations with China.

Citing records, Drilon said in terms of foreign direct investment (FDI) coming from China in 2017, the Philippines only got $31 million, while Chinese direct investment to Vietnam was at $2.170 billion.

Philippines’s FDIs from China is far below FDIs it received from Japan amounting to $600 million and from the United States amounting to $160 million in 2017, he added.

In 2017, bilateral trade between the Philippines and China was $21.94 billion, while those of Vietnam and China was amounted to $71.85 billion. 

“There is empirical evidence that such appeasement does not necessarily result in better investment in our country. Here, it’s not getting any better; it’s getting worse,” Drilon said.

He called on the government to file a protest against Chinese coast guards who allegedly harassed Filipino fishermen.

“This is more than just a bullying of our fishermen; this has implications on the recognized right of our country in that part of the South China Sea,” Drilon said.

Drilon also backed calls for the Department of Foreign Affairs to make public the details of the 50 to 100 protests the Philippines has lodged against China over the past two years.

“What is wrong with informing our people with how our government is protecting our sovereignty? There’s nothing wrong with that. The principle of transparency is enshrined in our Constitution,” he said.

‘Kahit sorry’

Senator Paolo Benigno "Bam" Aquino IV, meanwhile, said the least the government could do is to ask for an apology from China for taking away the catch of Filipino fishermen. 

“Pero kahit sorry, hindi man lang hiningi,” he said.

If the government will not do anything to address this incident, Aquino said the Chinese coast guard will be emboldened to “commit more abuses against the Filipino people.” — RSJ, GMA News