Local fishermen in Infanta, Pangasinan were alarmed after spotting a suspected Chinese vessel just 20 nautical miles from their coastline.

These fishermen in the area are now afraid to venture out to the sea after China's announcement of their policy to arrest non-Chinese entering their claimed territory in the West Philippine Sea.

A group of fishermen from Zambales shares the concern.

"Noong linggo nakita talaga namin, ang bilis din naman nilang nawala pero nakakatakot ‘yung ganun," Joey Guanzon, a fisherman, said.

"Natakot kami kasi malapit na sila sa amin," Jay-Ar Guanzon, another fisherman, added.

There are over 2,000 fishermen in Infanta.  While they continue to fish, they no longer venture to Scarborough Shoal or Bajo de Masinloc, limiting their range to within 100 nautical miles for safety.

"Hindi na kami makapunta kasi hinaharang na kami ng China," Allan Bantolino, another fisherman, said.

The fishermen's primary request from the government is to protect their fishing grounds to secure their livelihood.

They plan to coordinate with authorities to confirm whether the vessel was indeed Chinese.

"Banta yun sa amin kasi mas malapit na sila sa amin," Maritess Etac, President of Cato Fisherfolk Association, Inc., said.

The local government has yet to receive a formal report on the incident but is monitoring the situation closely, given that fishing is the main livelihood of the residents.

"Ang gagawin namin [ay] ire-report namin [ito] sa higher authority," Mayor Marvin Martinez said.

The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) has not yet released a statement, as of this writing.

Meanwhile, PCG-Pangasinan assures continuous monitoring of the fishermen and has reported no untoward incident, so far.