Philippines studying China proposal for fishing partnership in West Philippine Sea

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines is studying the proposal of the Chinese government to have a fishery cooperation agreement in the disputed South China Sea, National Security Adviser Clarita Carlos said yesterday.

“China proposed to have partnership between fishing villages, and we are looking at that,” Carlos said partly in Filipino during a televised public briefing. She did not provide details on the proposed fishery cooperation between Manila and Beijing.

Carlos said Marcos’ state visit to China from Jan. 3 to 5 has allowed continuing critical dialogue, especially on the West Philippine Sea (WPS), to avoid conflicts in the contested waters, believed to hold large reserves of oil and natural gas.

“There are many more levels of cooperation that are not known to the public that are happening, for example, between the Philippine Coast Guard and the Chinese Coast Guard,” the official said, adding the two countries are trying to reach a modus vivendi to avoid conflict in the contested South China Sea.

A political scientist had said a maritime or fishery cooperation between the Philippines and China will allow both countries to harness resources in the WPS.

Marcos and Chinese President Xi Jinping agreed to resume talks on joint oil and gas exploration in the non-disputed areas in the resource-rich South China Sea during a bilateral meeting in Beijing on Jan. 4.

“I really hope – I would very much like, as you have suggested, Mr. President, to be able to announce that we are continuing negotiations and that we hope that these negotiations will bear fruit because the pressure upon not only China, not only the Philippines but the rest of the world to move away from the traditional fronts of power,” Marcos told Xi.

Marcos also said he brought up the plight of Filipino fishermen in the WPS to Xi, who agreed to find a solution and compromise to protect the livelihood of Filipino fishermen and avoid any misunderstanding.

The Philippines and China also agreed on an arrangement for the establishment of a communication mechanism on maritime issues between the Department of Foreign Affairs of the Philippines and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China which, according to Marcos, would lessen tensions in the WPS.

In June last year, former foreign affairs secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. announced that discussions between the Philippines and China to jointly explore for oil and gas in the West Philippine Sea were “terminated completely” due to “constitutional constraints” and concerns about Philippine sovereignty.

On Jan. 10, the Supreme Court declared the Tripartite Agreement for Joint Marine Seismic Undertaking among companies from China, Vietnam and Philippines – signed during the administration of former president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo – as unconstitutional and void.

China continues to ignore the July 12, 2016 ruling of The Hague-based Permanent Court of Arbitration, which affirmed the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone in the West Philippine Sea and nullified Beijing’s claims over almost the entire South China Sea.