Chinese war ships spotted at Mischief Reef

Philippine Air Force surveillance planes spotted Chinese navy vessels at Panganiban Reef, also known as Mischief Reef, over the weekend, before President Arroyo left for a three-day state visit to China, a ranking defense official said yesterday.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said four vessels were seen on Saturday docked at the Chinese structures on the reef, about 135 nautical miles west of Palawan.

The official described two of the vessels as "large," one "supply" and other as "naval." He said the four ships were sighted at around 8:30 a.m. by reconnaissance planes. "Most probably, they are Chinese," said the official who could not confirm if the ships were still docked at the disputed reef as of yesterday.

Officials believe the military vessels were escorting the supply ships that brought provisions to Chinese troops in the structures.

The presence of the vessels bolstered reports that the Chinese structures at the reef were also military structures and not only fishermen’s shelter as Beijing had previously claimed.

The Chinese structures at the reef were discovered in 1995 and were expanded in 1998, a move that the government described in its diplomatic protests as a "creeping invasion."

Military officials said the structures likely contain sophisticated communications and satellite equipment.The reef is part of the Spratly islands which are being claimed, in whole or in part, by the Philippines, China, Taiwan, Malaysia, Vietnam and Brunei.

Manila has proposed the joint use of its facilities on the reef but China said the matter should be tackled at the level of the fisheries and agriculture ministries of both countries.

A ranking foreign office official said Manila will raise the matter of joint use of the supposed shelters.

"We will reiterate our original position on Panganiban Reef and that we want joint use of the structures," the source said.

Since 1995, the foreign office has been pushing for the signing of a code of conduct by all claimant nations – a move being opposed by Beijing which wants separate bilateral agreements.

President Arroyo is expected to discuss its claim over the reef and other parts of the Spratlys with Chinese President Jiang Zemin during their one-on-one meeting today.

Meanwhile, the Malaysian government announced that Kuala Lumpur would cut the term of the contracts of foreign workers, including Filipinos, from six years to three.

It was reported that at least 300,000 overseas Filipino workers will likely be affected by the layoffs. There are close to 600,000 OFWs in Western Malaysia and North Borneo. – With a report from Pia-Lee Brago