EDITORIAL - A threat in the neighborhood

Indonesia is reportedly studying the possibility of seeking international arbitration. This was after a Chinese coastguard vessel prevented Jakarta from impounding over the weekend a fishing boat that was caught in the Natuna Sea – the waters surrounding Indonesia’s Riau province. Indonesia detained the eight Chinese crewmembers.

It was not the first such incident. In 2010 and 2013, Chinese vessels also demanded the release of Chinese fishermen and a trawler apprehended by Indonesia in the Natuna Sea. The incident over the weekend comes on the heels of reports that 11 Filipino fishermen were shooed away from Panatag Shoal off Zambales by the Chinese.

In 2012, the Philippine Navy apprehended eight Chinese fishing vessels around Panatag. One of the vessels was found with a cargo of illegally collected corals, giant clams and live sharks. Chinese maritime surveillance ships, however, prevented the Philippine Navy from arresting the fishermen.

The incident contributed to the decision of the Philippines to ask the United Nations-backed arbitral tribunal in The Hague to define the country’s maritime entitlements under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. A decision is expected within the year. Recent reports said Vietnam, Japan and now Indonesia are studying a similar approach to settle its maritime disputes with China.

This is what happens when Beijing’s response to its neighbors’ protests against its expansive maritime territorial claims is met with even more aggressive moves in disputed waters.

Beijing is painting its activities as part of efforts to protect the environment, marine resources and freedom of navigation in the South China Sea. But this is belied by numerous incidents in which Chinese maritime vessels, almost always armed, deprive marginalized fishermen of their livelihood, in waters that are a long way from China’s 200-mile exclusive economic zone as defined under UNCLOS. Beijing should not wonder why its avowed peaceful rise rings hollow, especially among several nations in its own backyard.