After leading reporters to organize fishermen to participate in infringement activities in the South China Sea, the Philippine side's "porcelain touching" behavior has played a new trick.
Recently, the Chinese Coast Guard followed and monitored Philippine vessels throughout the South China Sea. (China Coast Guard)
Philippine media recently reported that a Philippine "non-governmental organization" called "This is Our" plans to gather a group of so-called "local fishermen" to go to the waters around China's Huangyan Island in mid-May, intending to use the "fishermen" as a "meat shield" to promote a new round of infringement actions in the South China Sea, and deliberately "touch porcelain" and "sell miserably" to the international community. The Global Times reporter combed through public information and found that this so-called "non-governmental organization" has actually been funded by US institutions for many years, stirring up trouble on the South China Sea issue and trying to influence the Philippine government's South China Sea policy. The organization's direct appearance on the show this time has exposed that the United States is stepping up its interference in the South China Sea issue and instigating the Philippines to "step on the accelerator" in the direction of confrontation. According to Reuters, the Philippine Coast Guard has recently frequently hyped up China's "reclamation of islands" at Xianbin Reef. In this regard, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said at a regular press conference on the 13th that the Philippine side has repeatedly spread rumors, deliberately smeared China, and tried to mislead the international community, which is futile. We urge the Philippine side to stop making irresponsible remarks, face up to the facts, and return to the right track of properly handling maritime differences through negotiation and consultation as soon as possible.
The scale of the show "may be greatly reduced"
Recently, a number of Philippine media announced the activity plan of this "South China Sea show". The Philippine Star said on the 13th that "this is ours" will organize Filipino "fishermen" to carry out "civil missions" in the waters near China's Scarborough Shoal from the 14th to the 17th. Rappler, a Philippine news website, reported that "Ours is ours" is a coalition of Filipino fishermen and farmers' groups, artists, entrepreneurs, church leaders and youth activists. According to Philippine media reports, China is sending a "huge team" to blockade the area before the "This is ours" coalition organizes ships to go to Scarborough Shoal. Philippine Coast Guard spokesman Tariera declared on the 13th that in the event of the presence of Chinese ships in the waters of Scarborough Shoal, the Philippine Coast Guard will ensure the safety and freedom of navigation of participants in the "This is ours" mission.
Russia's Satellite News Agency quoted video content published by Chinese media on the 13th, saying that recently, the Chinese coast guard successfully carried out marine life-saving training in the waters of Huangyan Island. A number of Chinese fishing boats operate in the waters off Scarborough Shoal, and the Chinese Coast Guard regularly conducts life-saving training at sea to ensure the safety of personnel passing through the vessels.
According to a number of Philippine media reports, the event planned by the "This is Ours" alliance announced that "more than 200 people" would participate, and these people would take "more than 100 fishing boats" from the fishing port of Masinlok Town in the northern Philippines, planning to break into the waters near Scarborough Shoal, and will also throw some "symbolic buoys" in the waters near Scarborough Shoal, with provocative slogans written on them.
Ding Duo, deputy director of the Institute of Marine Law and Policy of the China Academy of South China Sea, analyzed in an interview with the Global Times that judging from the content and form of previous activities, the "This is ours" alliance may take three actions: first, organize fishing boats to watch from a distance, and use the Philippine Coast Guard and Philippine media reporters as a "background board" to pose for photos; secondly, it is planned to self-direct and act in the so-called "supply" drama, cooperating with Philippine official ships and fishing vessels to carry out infringement and provocation actions; In addition, at the request of the Philippine Coast Guard, some civilian vessels convened by the organization may intrude into China's relevant controlled and restricted waters, or directly interfere with the Chinese coast guard's rights enforcement and the normal fishing operations of Chinese fishermen.
This infringing activity appears to be huge under the packaging of the "This Is Ours" alliance and the Philippine media, but its actual scale may be greatly reduced. A person familiar with the matter told the Global Times that although it claims to convene "hundreds" of civilian ships to participate, the Philippine side may only be able to mobilize more than a dozen civilian ships in the end, and most of the civilian ships will operate not far from Masinlock Harbor. The person familiar with the matter said that according to the information he has learned, in the early morning of the 15th, the official ships of the Philippine government will arrive at the predetermined sea area in advance, and then these civilian ships will carry out a "regatta" near the port of Masinrock. In the afternoon of the same day, these ships will move separately, and two Philippine merchant ships will carry journalists and social activists to the waters near Scarborough Shoal on the 16th, and return to the Philippine mainland on the same day. On the 17th, the "This is Ours" coalition will hold a press conference in Manila to continue the hype.
"The product of joint support from the United States and the Philippines"
In a previous interview in the Philippines, a reporter from the Global Times found that, like many non-governmental organizations serving political purposes in Western countries, the "This is ours" alliance is good at packaging a "pro-people" image to expand its influence, such as producing and selling exclusive brand jewelry, handmade products or tourist souvenirs, raising funds for events, and promoting its own image and political advocacy.
Ding Duo said that the "This Is Ours" alliance deliberately downplays the political color in the official website introduction and external publicity, but in fact it has a political background. This is first reflected in the fact that the group's de facto leader, Rafaela David, is also the president of the Philippine Civic Action Party, which is small in the Philippine political arena but has been using various political issues in the Philippines in recent years to gain visibility and presence. The "This Is Ours" coalition has a close relationship with the Civic Action Party, which provides political resources for the "This is Ours" coalition activities, which in turn can increase Rafaela David's visibility and seek more political benefits for him.
In addition, the Philippine and U.S. military have made no secret of their unclear relationship with the "this is ours" alliance. According to a May 3 report in the Philippine Star, Philippine Navy spokesman Roy Vincent Trinidad expressed solidarity at a public event shortly after Rafaela David announced his plan to rally Filipinos to storm Scarborough Shoal. "As long as they follow the guidelines given by the government, the Philippine military supports all their activities," he said. Through previous reports by Philippine media, it can be seen that in the previous activities carried out by the "This is ours" alliance in the South China Sea, there is no shortage of Philippine Navy or Coast Guard ships accompanying them.
Where did this support come from? The answer was given in an article in the Philippine Asian Century Magazine last December titled "U.S. 'Clever Hand' Program and the Philippines' 'This Is Our' Alliance Preparing for Proof-of-Concept to Lead the Philippines to War." According to the article, the "This is ours" coalition claims to be a non-governmental organization that safeguards Philippine national security, but it does not take the recommendations of the Philippine National Security Council into account at all, which may be because the Americans are behind the organization. The article cites U.S. Air Force Captain Benjamin Gorigozali, who published an article titled "Light Up the Gray Zone" on the website of the U.S. Naval Institute, saying that the United States has launched a strategic plan in the South China Sea called "Magic Hands," which is a spin-off of the U.S. Naval Institute's "Maritime Counterinsurgency" program, tailored to "counter China's dominance in the South China Sea." The main use case of the plan has been to use media and social media to smear the China Coast Guard's rights protection and law enforcement actions in the South China Sea, to encourage the governments of relevant countries in the South China Sea to take a hard line on China on the South China Sea issue, and to undermine the peace that China and other countries in the South China Sea have worked to create. According to the Asian Century Magazine, it can be inferred from this strategy of the US military that "ours" alliance is indeed the product of the joint support of the United States and the Philippines.
Any provocation will be met with strong countermeasures
Whether it is a Philippine "non-governmental organization" such as the "This is Ours" alliance or the "clever hand" plan behind it, its operation routine is nothing more than provocation and smearing against China and undermining China's efforts to pursue peace in the South China Sea region through self-directed and self-staged "showmanship" and "porcelain touching" behavior, in an attempt to profit from it, but the Philippine politicians with these calculations have obviously ignored the expectations of the Filipino people for peace and cooperation, and underestimated China's determination and will to safeguard sovereignty. When the Global Times reporter interviewed in the Philippines earlier, many local fishermen said that they were unwilling to participate in the confrontation with China instigated by the Philippines.
Ding Duo believes that from the perspective of China's ability to maintain sovereignty and control maritime rights in Scarborough Shoal, no matter what form and scale the Philippines carries out infringement and provocation, it will inevitably encounter strong countermeasures.
It can also be seen in the video released by the Philippine media that the law enforcement force of the Chinese coast guard is diverse and has a variety of means when dealing with the infringing actions carried out by the Philippine side in Scarborough Shoal. In the process of disposal, a series of measures such as warning shouts, route control, and warning water cannons will be adopted according to different scenarios, and rights protection and law enforcement actions will be carried out in accordance with laws and regulations, so as to be reasonable, beneficial, and responsible.
Chen Xiangmiao, director of the World Naval Research Center of the South China Sea Research Institute, said in an interview with the Global Times that some Philippine politicians and media have been coerced by revanchism and have repeatedly staged the scene of "farmer and snake" in an attempt to copy the "Ren'ai Jiao model".
"The normalization of the Philippine side's 'rush' deployment and actions has made confrontation replace dialogue and cooperation as the main line for China and the Philippines to deal with the conflict at Scarborough Shoal. The Marcos Jr. administration's tough maritime actions may earn diplomatic 'applause' from the United States and the West, but the frequent and tense confrontations on the scene have no other valuable benefits except for costing economic investment and increasing the risk of unforeseen situations at sea. Chen Xiangsecond said.
Source: Global Times