In this March 28, 2016, photo, Filipino fisherman Renato Etac, from the
Philippines, sits on his boat during an interview with the Associated
Press in Cato, northwestern Philippines. More than once, Chinese coast
guardsmen approached Etac’s boat and pointed their rifles at him, but he
says he knew they would not fire and risk starting a war. AP
CATO, Pangasinan—As Asian countries jostle for territory in the South China Sea, one Filipino fisherman is taking a stand.
He has faced down Chinese coast
guard rifles, and even engaged in a stone-throwing duel with the Chinese last
month that shattered two windows on his outrigger.
“They’ll say, ‘Out, out of
Scarborough,’” Renato Etac says, referring to Scarborough Shoal, a rocky
outcropping claimed by both the Philippines and China.
He yells back, “Where is the
document that shows Scarborough is Chinese property?”
At one level, the territorial
disputes in the South China Sea are a battle of wills between American and
Chinese battleships and planes. At another level, they are cat-and-mouse chases
between the coast guards of several countries and foreign fishermen, and among
the fishing boats themselves.
Indonesia seized a Chinese fishing
boat last month and arrested eight fishermen, only to have a Chinese coast
guard vessel ram the fishing boat as it was being towed, allowing it to escape.
Vietnam’s coast guard chased away
more than 100 Chinese boats over a two-week period, its state media reported
this week, and made a rare seizure of a Chinese ship carrying 100,000 liters
(26,400 gallons) of diesel oil, reportedly for sale to fishing boats in the
area.
The South China Sea, a hodgepodge of
overlapping territorial claims in the Pacific, is both strategically important
and a vital shipping route for international trade. It may also contain
valuable oil and natural gas reserves.
As tensions ratchet up, though, it
is perhaps those who make a living at sea who feel it the most. Here are some
stories from fishermen around the region.
In this Feb.27, 2015 photo provided by Renato Etac, Chinese Coast Guard
members approach Filipino fishermen as they confront them off
Scarborough Shoal at South China Sea, also called the West Philippine
Sea, in northwestern Philippines. More than once, Chinese coast
guardsmen approached Etac’s boat and pointed their rifles at him, but he
says he knew they would not fire and risk starting a war.(Renato Etac
via AP)
Guardian of Scarborough
Renato Etac has had dozens of
encounters with Chinese ships.
More than once, a small team of
Chinese coast guardsmen on a rubber boat approached his boat and pointed their
rifles at him, but he says he knew they would not fire and risk starting a war.
At other times, the Chinese will
surge as if to hit his boat, but the 37-year-old fisherman uses his keen
knowledge of Scarborough Shoal (which Filipinos refer to as Panatag Shoal or
Bajo de Masinloc) where he has fished for Spanish mackerel, trevally and
grouper since he was a teenager to outmaneuver them.
Etac says he just wants to defend
his livelihood in waters that used to be open to all. China took control of
Scarborough Shoal in 2012 after a two-month standoff with Philippine government
ships. It sits about 230 kilometers (145 miles) west of the Philippines, and
1,000 km (620 miles) from the Chinese coast.
“It’s like quarreling, like playing
games,” he says. “Yelling, dirty finger, everything’s there. Sometimes I use
expletives in different dialects and I get to laugh when I see them, because
they don’t understand what I’m saying.”
He enjoys what he calls the
territorial “debates” in the high seas, though his earnings from a weeklong
fishing expedition have dropped by more than half to P3,000 because of both the
Chinese disruptions and competition.
“He’s like the guardian of Scarborough,
sir,” said Greggy Etac, a relative and a fellow fisherman. “I used to sail with
him, but now, I’m scared.”
