As people in Manila celebrate the UN-backed tribunal decision over the disputes on the West Philippine Sea, fisherman remain clueless on the issue.
In the town of Cato in Pangasinan and the province of Zambales, most fishermen did not even know that a case was filed against China over the maritime dispute, Philippine Daily Inquirer reports.
Fishermen from the coastal areas have stopped their expeditions to the Panatag (Scarborough) shoal, a rich fishing ground about 240 km southwest of Cato in the West Philippine Sea, after being driven away by the Chinese Coast guard on multiple occasions.
Upon hearing the news on The Hague tribunal, mixed reactions were received from fishermen that Inquirer talked to.
A fisherman from Cato, Joseph Daroca’s face lit up when he was informed about the ruling. “If the shoal is finally open [to us], thank you very much. You won’t be seeing any boat docked here anymore,” he said.
However, some fishermen remain skeptical on returning their boats to the shoal. Mario, a fish vendor from Zambales, does not see himself returning his boats to the shoal until Chinese ships leave for good after being bullied by their coast guards.
Many of their fishermen have been threatened by using water cannons or their own boats to hit their fishing vessels.
Some fishermen remain optimistic that the shoal will one day be for sharing for fishermen of all nationalities.
“China, Vietnam, Philippines, Malaysia, Korea, sama-sama ka laot,” Cesar, a fisherman from Zambales, told ABS-CBN news. “Minsan, nagsasama pa kami sa iisang lantsa, manonood ng bala. Basta lahat makapangisda”
The Hague tribunal is just the first step for fisherman to know if will be safe for them to sail to the shoal once more.
