Marcos: PH not looking for trouble, just defending its rights in WPS

President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos on Friday said the Philippines is not looking for trouble in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) following the removal of a China-installed floating barrier in Scarborough Shoal.

In an interview with reporters, Marcos stood firm that the Philippine government will continue to defend and protect the country's maritime territory as well as its fishermen and their rights to use the WPS for their livelihood.

"Hindi tayo naghahanap ng gulo, basta't gagawin natin, patuloy nating ipapagtanggol ang Pilipinas, ang maritime territory ng Pilipinas, ang karapatan ng mga fisherman natin na mangisda doon sa mga areas kung saan sila nangingisda daang-daang taon na kaya't hindi ko maintindihan bakit nagkaganito," Marcos said.

(We are not looking for trouble, what we will do is we will continue to defend the Philippines, our maritime territory, as well as the rights of the Filipino fishermen to fish in the region.)

"Basta kagaya ng sabi ko, umiiwas nga tayo sa gulo, umiiwas nga tayo sa maiinit na salita ngunit matibay ang ating pagdepensa sa teritoryo ng Pilipinas," he added.

(Like I said, we are avoiding any trouble, we are avoiding harsh words but we are firm in defending our territory.)

After the Philippine Coast Guard removed the 300-meter-long barrier in Scarborough Shoal upon instructions from Marcos, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Wenbin urged the Philippines "not to make provocations or seek trouble."

Scarborough Shoal, locally known as Bajo de Masinloc, is a U-shaped rocky outcrop teeming with marine resources. China seized it from Manila in 2012 following a two-month standoff, triggering an arbitration complaint by Manila 10 years ago.

The shoal is 472 nautical miles from China’s nearest coastal province of Hainan and lies 124 nautical miles off the nearest Philippine landmass of Palawan.

Philippine officials had called China's installation of the barrier a violation of international law and the country's sovereignty.

On Tuesday, Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary said the removal of China's floating barrier in Scarborough Shoal is consistent with the Philippines’ position on the WPS.

An arbitral tribunal in The Hague, Netherlands, which invalidated China’s massive claims over the South China Sea, ruled that no country can claim sovereign rights over the shoal, saying it is a traditional fishing ground for Filipino, Vietnamese and Chinese fishermen.

China has since refused to recognize the international arbitration tribunal's ruling.

Marcos, during Friday's interview, said he cannot fully discuss in detail the operation that led to the removal of the floating barrier.

"Many of these are operational issues that I really cannot talk about but in terms of taking down the barrier, I don't see what else we would do," Marcos said, adding that when the barrier was removed, Filipino fishermen were able to catch 164 tons of fish in just one day. 

Early this month, Marcos said the Philippines would continue to work with all the countries to foster a rules-based, international order as he lamented that the vision for the South China Sea to be a sea of peace, stability and prosperity “remains a distant reality.” —KBK, GMA Integrated News