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Why can’t red-tagging officials denounce Communist China?

Why can’t red-tagging officials denounce Communist China?

by | Sep 22, 2022 | Gotcha

PNA photo of Chinese ‘militia boats’ in WPS

GOTCHA

written on Apr 23, 2021

Sinovac safety efficacy and price still need clarifying

• Beijing’s communist rulers subvert Philippine interests

• Their warships terrorize Filipinos in traditional fishing grounds

• This month alone their militia stole P4.4 billion in seafood from our exclusive economic zone

Certain administration officials habitually red-tag. Targeted are not only political oppositionists. Artists, clerics, academics, journalists, trade unionists, environmentalists, health activists, youth leaders and rights lawyers too have been victimized. Even outspoken netizens and organizers of “community pantries” or free food for the hungry are profiled. Contrary opinion – free thought – mechanically is labeled as “communist, terrorist, subversive.”

Yet the red-taggers don’t ever denounce Communist China. Why?

Red-tagging distracts, divides and demoralizes the people. Exaggerated in the public mind is the threat of scattered barrio rebel bands that good governance and policing can curb. The impression is that more infantry are needed for internal counter-insurgency, drawing resources away from naval and air external defense. That plays right into the desired scenario of the region’s duplicitous bully.

China’s communist rulers subvert Philippine interests. They aggress our seas, occupy our coral reefs and steal our fish. Commissar-led warships threaten our sailors, marines and aviators. Maritime militia terrorize our fishermen, and deprive us of food and other marine resources. General Secretary Xi Jinping and his Chinese Communist Party must be exposed for what they are – enemies of the Filipinos.

Communist China is sapping our economy. In the past two weeks alone 240 Chinese maritime militia trawlers poached in Pagkakaisa (Union) Bank and the Kalayaan Islands. The Chinese embassy in Manila ignored diplomatic protests and badmouthed defense officials who told the intruders to leave. Up to P4.4 billion worth of fish was plundered. The perennial red-taggers eerily were silent.

Each militia vessel is 60 meters long, the span of two basketball courts. Each can haul in 240,000 kilos of fish, according to the National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea. In sum, the 240 trawlers haul off 57,600,000 kilos of fish per trespassing expedition.

Multiply that by P76.70 per kilo. That’s the peso value of South China Sea fish capture in 2018, according to the Southeast Asia Fisheries Development Council. That makes P4,417,920,000 in seafood stolen from Filipinos in one intrusion alone.

The repeated intrusions in Pagkakaisa and Kalayaan this amihan season began in December 2020, as satellite-tracked by Planet Labs. At first, 220 vessels blockaded and attempted to occupy Julian Felipe (Whitsun) Reef, within the Philippines’ 200-mile exclusive economic zone. The Asia Maritime Transparency Institute detected the mass up by their automatic identification systems. The NTF-WPS began photographing them on March 7. At least two-dozen have been identified as coming from Guangdong, 700 miles away. By their names and serial numbers, five are from the same fleet of the steel-hulled militia trawler that rammed and sank an anchored Filipino wooden boat at Recto (Reed) Bank in June 2019.

Apart from the P4.4 billion fish theft were simultaneous poaching at Recto and Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal, also since December. Amihan, November to May, is when 350,000 Filipinos in small boats take advantage of mild weather to fish in the WPS. Of late they have been staying close to shore. China coastguards, directly under Xi Jinping’s Central Military Commission, menace them when they stray farther out. That way, China’s maritime militia is able to pillage at will, year-round. This week only a handful of Filipino boats ventured to Kalayaan and Panatag, the NTF-WPS reported.

The pillage escalated in 2016. That was the year the Philippines won international court arbitration against Communist China’s sea expansionism. But President Rody Duterte set aside the victory in the hope of getting $24 billion in Beijing loans. Taking advantage, Beijing at once fortified seven reefs grabbed earlier from the Philippines. In 2017 it took an eighth, Sandy Cay, within the territorial waters of Kalayaan, Palawan. Only 0.5 percent was loaned.

Duterte appeased the communist enemy. The red-taggers spared him.

Sinovac safety efficacy and price still need clarifying

* * *

            “Gotcha: An Exposé on the Philippine Government” is available as e-book and paperback. Get a free copy of “Chapter 1: Beijing’s Bullying and Duplicity”. Simply subscribe to my newsletter HERE. Book orders also accepted there.

Sinovac safety efficacy and price still need clarifying

Sinovac safety efficacy and price still need clarifying

Sinovac safety efficacy and price still need clarifying

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Sugar planters too crying against favored traders

Sugar planters too crying against favored traders

by | Sep 22, 2022 | Gotcha

photo from Department of Agrarian Reform website

GOTCHA

written on Apr 21, 2021

Sinovac safety efficacy and price still need clarifying

There are rumblings in the sugar industry. Planters are decrying the Department of Agriculture’s favoring import-export traders. They allege that they are being forced to export, at cheaper than market rates. That worsens the yearly production shortage. Then they can only watch as the same exporters consequently import sugar to cover local demand.

Is the bias widespread against domestic producers? Hog raisers are groaning because the administration will excessively import pork for a year, at drastically reduced tariffs at that. Earlier, tilapia growers exposed an attempt by DA bureaucrats to allow imports of stocks from China. And poultry men and feed makers reeled from nonstop chicken imports and smuggling.

Lawmakers need to scrutinize agriculture policy. Some senators already suspect kickbacks by DA officials and ruling politicos fundraising for Election 2022.

Sugar planters expect a production shortage of 307,000 tons this year. As usual, however, they will be made to export five to nine percent of stocks to America. That’s at P300 lower than prevailing market rates, laments planter-miller Steven Chan. Four big-name exporters will make a killing.

It doesn’t end there, says Chan. The same exporters will then import at very low price the 307,000-ton shortage, plus the exported volume. They make another killing.

Planters are also required to stow another five to nine percent as domestic emergency buffer. Plus another five to nine percent for export to the rest of the world market. Milling of those stocks can only be done with government go-signal. A third scam occurs, says Chan. Part of those is again forcibly allocated to the traders, for more windfall profits.

All those are based on rules of the Sugar Regulatory Administration. Chan alleges that the “cartel” is able to influence the agency.

Other planters and millers are moaning. But afraid of the import-export traders’ clout, they cannot come out openly, one of them says. “In many cases, the traders also lend the planters capital, like for farm mechanization, which makes them indebted,” adds another planter from Bacolod.

The situation has been going on for at least eight years, Chan says. Diminishing land hectarage devoted to sugar cane causes it. As well, inefficient production resulting from the parceling of large plantations to land reform beneficiaries. “Land is non-renewable yet demand grows with the population,” says Chan, chairman of Central Azucarera de Bais and president of Central Azucarera de San Antonio.

Chan has been taking out newspaper ads detailing the issues. He also complained to DA Secretary William Dar as far back as September 2020.

As chairman of the SRA Sugar Board, Dar took issue with Chan’s figures in November. The Sugar Board allocated exports to the US on determining a surplus for crop year 2020-2021, he said.

“The various sugar producers’ associations and federations across the country arrived at the same conclusion as the SRA: that the country will have surplus production,” Dar replied. Thus, the recommended export to America. “It is outlandish to consider that these associations and federations – which represent close to 90 percent of total raw production – were flawed… the rest of the country has taken a similar position and you are the only one opposed to it.”

The SRA conceals figures from the public, Chan alleges. Weekly supply and demand figures are posted on the agency website. But only a fraction of the imports is reported, he says, “only the 22,528.85 tons covered by sugar orders.”

“But exclusive for the cartel’s eyes only” are undisclosed weekly figures that Chan obtained from the agency. “You will see that 8,892 tons of specialty sugars, 87,145 tons of premix sugars and 115,585 tons of high-fructose corn syrup imports are now included. This is how the public is fooled about the real shortage.”

A Senate inquiry can flesh out Chan’s allegations that are backed by figures from the 2015-2016 to 2019-2020 crop years. Local officials and newsmen from Negros support him.

Sinovac safety efficacy and price still need clarifying

* * *

            “Gotcha: An Exposé on the Philippine Government” is available as e-book and paperback. Get a free copy of “Chapter 1: Beijing’s Bullying and Duplicity”. Simply subscribe to my newsletter HERE. Book orders also accepted there.

Sinovac safety efficacy and price still need clarifying

Coast Guard duty: interdict Chinese militia, escort Filipinos

Coast Guard duty: interdict Chinese militia, escort Filipinos

by | Sep 22, 2022 | Gotcha

photo from Philippine News Agency

GOTCHA

written on Apr 16, 2021

Sinovac safety efficacy and price still need clarifying

• 240 Chinese trawlers are poaching in Philippine EEZ.

• Each 60-meter long vessel can haul in 240,000 kilos of fish.

• They steal 57,600,000 kilos per intrusion.

It’s time to interdict Chinese poachers in the Philippines’ western exclusive economic zone. About 240 trawlers are pillaging Pagkakaisa (Union) Bank and Kalayaan Islands municipality of Palawan. Millions of kilos of seafood, including endangered species, are hauled off. Filipinos are being driven away from their rightful fishing grounds. The Chinese embassy ignores diplomatic protests, abets the thievery and badmouths defense officials. Stern law enforcement is called for.

The Philippine Coast Guard must raise anchor. It is the armed and uniformed civilian agency for maritime law enforcement. PCG’s missions include protection of Filipino fishers, preserving the marine environment and maintaining safety at sea. “Continuous swarming by Chinese vessels threatens the safety of navigation, safety of life at sea and impedes the exclusive right of Filipinos to benefit from the marine wealth in the EEZ,” says the National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea. Arresting and jailing them can deter maritime crime.

Filipino fishers need PCG escorts in the EEZ. The Task Force identifies the poachers as Chinese maritime militia. Beijing has militarized its distant water civilian fishing fleet. The militia augments its naval aggression in Southeast Asia. The Chinese navy arms and equips them with surveillance and communications gear to monitor and harass neighbors’ seacraft. Imprisoning them will show China the Philippines’ resolve to defend national sovereignty.

Breakdown of reef intrusion: 136 Chinese trawlers in Burgos (Gaven), 65 in Mabini (Johnson South), 11 at Ayungin (Second Thomas), nine at Julian Felipe (Whitsun), six at Panganiban (Mischief), five at Kota Island, four at Pagasa Island, one at Likas Island, plus more.

Each of the 240 trawlers can haul in 240,000 kilos of fish, the Task Force reports. They are stealing 57,600,000 kilos per intrusion. Short of supply, Filipinos must import round scad (galunggong) from Hainan, likely stolen from them.

Filipino coast guards are trained to inspect, rescue and interdict. Each time they don their uniform they show readiness to perform duty, at risk of life and limb. In past administrations they encircled foreign poachers even in rough waters. Last time was in May 2016, when they rounded up Chinese trawlers off the Batanes isles pretending to be locals flying Filipino flags. The dead giveaway was that the flags wrongly had the red field up. Today the PCG is better manned and equipped.

Maritime law enforcement strikes fear in sea criminals. Coast guards of giant Indonesia and tiny Palau apprehend poachers on sight. Knowing the drill, they need no clearance from central authorities. Violent resisters are shot. Confiscated craft are burned. Officers and men are awarded medals and hailed as heroes.

In 2016 Manila won arbitral ruling against Beijing’s sea expansionism. The Hague court outlawed China’s concocted “nine-dash line” and “historic rights” over the entire South China Sea. Benefited as well were Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam whose EEZs China also encroached.

But since then the PCG has been restrained from maritime work. Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal was made off limits to patrols, leaving it to illegal, unreported, unrestricted fishing by Hainanese. Only 123 miles from Zambales, Panatag has been Filipino traditional fishing grounds for centuries. In Recto Bank one night in 2019 a Chinese steel-hulled militia ship rammed an anchored Filipino wooden boat, throwing 26 fishermen overboard. Malacañang and the Chinese embassy called it an accident. The PCG knew better: it was deliberate. The stationary Filipino boat was all lighted up; the Chinese ship switched off its light before the collision, turned on its searchlight after, then abandoned the victims. The Chinese embassy lied that the offending crew got scared because they were chased by seven other Filipino boats. Untrue. Two of the victims had to swim for hours towards a Vietnamese vessel and beg for rescue of their companions.

The PCG must not abdicate its role. Otherwise it’s the China Coast Guard that will patrol and enforce Chinese rules in the West Philippine Sea. Last week the Chinese agency questioned the presence of a Filipino civilian vessel 90 miles from Palawan, well within the Philippines’ 200-mile EEZ and 800 miles beyond China’s. The ABS-CBN news crew onboard video-recorded the scene.

The PCG must enforce the Fisheries Code (RA 8550). Section 87 states: “Poaching in Philippine Waters. – It shall be unlawful for any foreign person, corporation or entity to fish or operate any fishing vessel in Philippine waters.

“The entry of any foreign fishing vessel in Philippine waters shall constitute a prima facie evidence that the vessel is engaged in fishing in Philippine waters.

“Violation of the above shall be punished by a fine of One Hundred Thousand US Dollars (US$100,000), in addition to the confiscation of its catch, fishing equipment and fishing vessel: Provided, that the Department (of Transportation) is empowered to impose an administrative fine of not less than Fifty Thousand US Dollars (US$50,000) but not more than Two Hundred Thousand US Dollars (US$200,000) or its equivalent in the Philippine currency.”

Sinovac safety efficacy and price still need clarifying

* * *

            “Gotcha: An Exposé on the Philippine Government” is available as e-book and paperback. Get a free copy of “Chapter 1: Beijing’s Bullying and Duplicity”. Simply subscribe to my newsletter HERE. Book orders also accepted there.

Sinovac safety efficacy and price still need clarifying

Sinovac safety efficacy and price still need clarifying

Govt’s Chinese vaccine inept: just give us a fighting chance

Govt’s Chinese vaccine inept: just give us a fighting chance

by | Sep 22, 2022 | Gotcha

GOTCHA

written on Apr 14, 2021

Sinovac safety efficacy and price still need clarifying

Science supposedly guides government’s pandemic response. Neither the World Health Organization nor any of 35 states with stringent regulatory agencies has endorsed China COVID-19 vaccines. Sinovac, Sinopharm and CanSino withhold trial results from requisite peer review. Still, on President Duterte’s preference, General Carlito Galvez as “vaccine czar” prioritized them.

Of mere 50-percent efficacy, Sinovac is being injected on health frontliners and the elderly. As it’s the only brand around, Malacañang lawyers overruled drug experts who nixed it for such vulnerable sectors. The 2.5 million donated and paid doses are for 1.25 million vaccinees, two each. Due to unsure future deliveries, jabs are given only once to stretch the supply in contagion hotspots. Efficacy is further reduced to near nil. Wasted is P1.05 billion on 1.5 million purchased doses, P700 apiece. Vaccinees still will be severely infected, to further strain health care resources. Then 126 presidential guards were downed despite (unauthorized) injection with Sinopharm in October.

China’s rare admission this week of poor vaccine efficacy worsens the Philippine dilemma. Gao Fu, head of China’s Center for Disease Control, contemplates various options: combine with mRNA type from the West, alter the doses or intervals, or add a third jab. Meaning, Malacañang may have to take back its belittling of Western brands, or wait for Chinese reformulations, or borrow more for booster shots. Any which way, China can still earn billions of dollars from vaccine sales.

Poor governments make do with China brands because these are partially donated and loaned, politically dictated or contain kickback. (Sinovac has a dark record of bribing Chinese officials for product approval.) Rich countries have cornered 87 percent of Western vaccines. Malacañang could have indented 20 million doses of Pfizer-USA as far back as July 2020 assisted by then-State secretary Mike Pompeo. But, as Foreign Secretary Teddy Locsin fumed, “someone dropped the ball.” The Dept. of Health dilly-dallied on customary non-disclosure of proprietary info; Pfizer sold the reserve elsewhere.

Duterte dithered in September about making a down payment to secure Western vaccines. Supposedly the law constrained him. In truth he was referring to an administrative order that he could easily rescind. As pointed up by former justice Antonio Carpio, existing law lets the President approve unlimited advance payments in emergencies and calamities. “In fact, days before Duterte invoked the supposed prohibition, the Office of the President authorized DOH to purchase personal protective equipment and other medical paraphernalia with up to 50-percent advance payment.”

The Philippines has received only one other vaccine, AstraZeneca, 525,600 free vials from Covax-WHO. But DOH last week suspended use of the British-Swedish make. British and European experts found strong links of abdominal and brain clots to the shots. Of 79 cases in Britain, 19 were fatal. Of 86 in Europe, 18 were too. With millions subsequently inoculated everyday, both Britain and Europe’s drug regulators “concluded that the vaccine’s benefits outweigh the potential risk of the clots,” The Economist reports. Still Britain advised another brand for ages 30 and below, the most affected bracket.

Filipinos can’t wait till the third quarter, when Pfizer and Moderna orders from local governments and private firms will arrive. Protracted lockdowns have ruined millions of jobs and hundreds of thousands of small businesses. The economy needs to restart. Hopefully DOH will not block Pfizer anew. Life-threatening allergic reactions have been found – five per million, none of them fatal. No reason to overreact. Doctors know how to deal with them, that’s why vaccinees are made to stick around for 15 minutes to check for adverse effects.

Government’s pandemic responses have been pendulum swings. In February 2020 when the first COVID-19 case and death were reported to be Wuhanese, DOH refused to lock out and likely insult Chinese. Then, as infections spread, began the world’s longest wholesale lockdown. Duterte kept trivializing the crisis by threatening to slap the virus in the face while generals scolded the public to take the pandemic seriously. Slum-dwellers were rounded up for breaking quarantine in shanty homes, while police generals partied and Malacañang officials traveled to tourist resorts and videoke-d in bars without face masks and shields. Malacañang forbade local officials from participation in cash aid but, failing to distribute P27 billion for a year, now gives them 15 days to hand it out or else. It praised health frontlines but falsely accused them of revolution when all they sought was time out to re-strategize.

This is the first pandemic in a century; nobody’s adept at it. But red-tagging activists and squeezing a giant broadcaster and other big businesses are certainly out of sync. More so if those companies are among the biggest charity donors, where government has failed. Asia-Pacific countries are immunizing 24/7. In the Philippines a ceremonial ribbon-cutting inaugurates every new quarantine facility, followed by interminable speeches by Cabinet men. Officials busy themselves coining acronyms like “NCR Plus” to add to “GCQ,” “MGCQ,” “ECQ” and “MECQ.”

The WHO advised from the start to test, trace and isolate. Neighbors Taiwan, Vietnam and Thailand did just that, so have kept infections and deaths low. Today Philippine hospitals are begging government to equip vulnerable shanty dwellers with antigen test kits, to no avail. Contact tracing is inexistent. Except for an old Chinese flu medicine, Lian Hua, DOH forbids the dispensing and distribution of “untested” treatments. Approved in many lands, Ivermectin is in limbo in the Philippines.

Duterte said vaccines are the only hope from pandemic. But with government’s vaccine plan a flop, it should at least give Filipinos a fighting chance via other options.

Sinovac safety efficacy and price still need clarifying

* * *

            “Gotcha: An Exposé on the Philippine Government” is available as e-book and paperback. Get a free copy of “Chapter 1: Beijing’s Bullying and Duplicity”. Simply subscribe to my newsletter HERE. Book orders also accepted there.

Sinovac safety efficacy and price still need clarifying

Sinovac safety efficacy and price still need clarifying

Sinovac safety efficacy and price still need clarifying

Restore joint naval patrols to show resolve vs bully

Restore joint naval patrols to show resolve vs bully

by | Sep 22, 2022 | Gotcha

GOTCHA

written on Apr 7, 2021

Sinovac safety efficacy and price still need clarifying

Restore joint patrols with allies. That is one of the Philippines’ options to defend its exclusive economic zone. President Duterte’s halt in 2016 of exercises with naval powers only abetted more Chinese sea incursions. Hundreds of Chinese maritime militia vessels are now blockading Julian Felipe Reef and poaching in other parts of the western EEZ. Joint sea drills will discourage intruding Chinese warships that escort the militia fleet.

Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana says China is bent on occupying Julian Felipe (Whitsun) Reef, 175 miles off Palawan. Philippine battle craft are constrained from confronting China’s civilian though militarized trawlers. Commander-in-Chief Duterte can authorize Lorenzana to restart joint patrols with allies. That will turn back the escalating sea encroachment by Chinese gray ships.

Duterte must be seen as resolute. If not, morale and discipline will wane in the Armed Forces of the Philippines. China will take the entire West Philippine Sea without a fight, as it intends, Sun Tzu-style.

Naval practices are a sovereign right under international law. It is like a homeowner readying to deter a thief. Defense is not an act of war but keeping the peace. It is every state leader’s duty.

Philippine security partners America, Japan and Australia used to involve joint patrols in the maritime exercises. Such patrols not only bolstered participants’ capabilities. Filipinos were also able to determine what military hard and software to acquire, and display defense resolve. For the allies the patrols were freedom-of-navigation operations. They had to resist Beijing’s illegal claim to the entire South China Sea as an internal lake. Through the SCS, that includes the EEZs of Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam, passes $5 trillion in annual world commerce.

Lorenzana disclosed last year he was “under orders” from Duterte to not join allied maritime patrols, except in 12-mile territorial waters. He said so in response to press queries about Duterte’s penultimate State of the Nation of being “inutile” against China aggression. Despite appeasing China since 2016 for $24 billion in loans and aid, Duterte has received only 0.5 percent. Critics rued that he reduced the AFP to shore patrol.

Beijing scoffs at Manila’s complaint against militia swarming of Julian Felipe Reef. To Foreign Secretary Teodoro Locsin’s protest, China’s embassy lied that fishers were only sheltering from (inexistent) storm. It also called Lorenzana names for telling the militia to leave. Beijing employs “wolf-warrior diplomacy” in capitals that it can bully.

China is also playing “victim.” It claims that its fishers have been going to Julian Felipe Reef for years and cannot be driven away. That’s the same line it used in occupying in 2012 Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal, 123 miles from Zambales.

From 220 vessels when first sighted March 7 at Julian Felipe, 44 militia trawlers remain. Ninety-two proceeded to McKennan (Hughes) and 84 to Burgos (Gaven) Reefs. All are in Pagkakaisa (Union) Bank, shallow waters within the Philippines’ 200-mile EEZ and 650 miles beyond China’s.

Dozens more Chinese vessels are poaching in Recto (Reed) Bank off Palawan. Also around Kalayaan Island Group, a municipality of Palawan. As if taunting Manila, three Chinese warships moored this week at Panganiban (Mischief) Reef, which China concreted into an air and navy base 120 miles from Palawan.

Without allies, the undermanned, under-equipped AFP can hardly patrol the West Philippine Sea. “Still our soldiers strive on, true to duty to protect our people and territory,” a general told The STAR. The AFP is modernizing and training as a “credible defense force.”

Social media chat groups of Philippine Military Academy batches are abuzz on what needs to be done, another star-rank officer said. Opined is the inability of the civilian Philippine Coast Guard to interdict the much larger Chinese poaching trawlers. Another is to use for air reconnaissance not just turbo-trainer planes but longer range light combat ones. Also faster, sturdier frigates for deeper waters.

“Nangangapa ang field commanders. They’re feeling their way around,” a retired general noted. “By doctrine they know what to do. But what if the higher-up hesitates or disapproves?” The retiree shuddered at the thought of breakdown of command and control due to irresoluteness.

Former foreign secretary Albert del Rosario sees joint patrols with America as the answer to China’s challenge. “Before stepping down as SFA we [met] twice with then-deputy US secretary of State Antony Blinken to seek joint patrols in the West Philippine Sea,” he recounts. “An agreement on joint patrols was approved, but this was shelved by President Duterte, fearing that China would be displeased.”

But “China’s duplicity and invasion of our waters remain unabated despite the efforts of President Duterte to appease China,” he notes. “With Antony Blinken as the incumbent Secretary of State, it may now be imperative for us to revisit joint patrols in the West Philippine Sea with our sole treaty ally, to confront the bullying tactics of China.”

Sinovac safety efficacy and price still need clarifying

* * *

            “Gotcha: An Exposé on the Philippine Government” is available as e-book and paperback. Get a free copy of “Chapter 1: Beijing’s Bullying and Duplicity”. Simply subscribe to my newsletter HERE. Book orders also accepted there.

Sinovac safety efficacy and price still need clarifying

Sinovac safety efficacy and price still need clarifying

Sinovac safety efficacy and price still need clarifying

World opinion, naval powers will shame China in reef grab

World opinion, naval powers will shame China in reef grab

by | Sep 22, 2022 | Gotcha

GOTCHA

written on Mar 31, 2021

Sinovac safety efficacy and price still need clarifying

China’s embassy in Manila denies invasion by its maritime militia of the Philippines’ Julian Felipe Reef. Supposedly the 220 Chinese vessels are fishers sheltering from storm. The embassy even disavows the very existence of such militarized fishing fleet.

That’s classic Beijing duplicity. At the same time it trumpets to home audiences the “triumphs” of its thousands-strong People’s Armed Force Maritime Militia. It also builds militia trawlers – so far 84 – with reinforced steel hulls for ramming, arms for harassing and gadgets for spying in neighbor-states’ waters. The PAFMM assists the People’s Liberation Army in sea aggression.

The 220 Chinese craft were sighted at Julian Felipe on March 7. No international weather bulletin mentioned any storm before then till today, when they remain in phalanx at the reef 175 miles from Philippine shore. It’s the amihan (northeasterly season) of calm waters in the West Philippine (South China) Sea. Even if it were habagat (southwest monsoon) of rough seas, no storm lasts that long. Still Beijing sticks to the “innocent sheltering” alibi to mask its bullying.

Chinese militia occupation of Julian Felipe (Whitsun) Reef is but the first step. Next is to concrete the reef. Julian Felipe is part of Pagkakaisa (Union) Bank, in the Philippines’ 200-mile exclusive economic zone. In 2013 China started paving airstrips in the bank’s McKennan (Hughes) and Mabini (Johnson South) Reefs. With a triangle of fortified artificial islands, China will bolster its grab of Pagkakaisa. From there it can menace Vietnamese patrols and the Philippines’ nearby Pagasa Island. China had employed the same trick of “innocent shelter” in 1995 to grab Panganiban (Mischief) Reef closer to Palawan. Reclaiming it into a naval and air base, China now threatens Filipino surveyors at adjacent oil- and gas-rich Recto (Reed) Bank.

Blockades by fisheries militia are part of China’s “gray zone operations.” If done by the PLA-Navy, it is a direct provocation to war. Feigning innocent civilian fishing and sheltering blurs blatant aggression. China is like a rogue state deploying terrorists to subvert a coveted neighbor prior to annexation.

Manila is no stranger to China’s maritime militia duplicity. Backed by China coastguards, armed fishers drive away Filipinos from territorial Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal and Sandy Cay.

China employed maritime militia in attempting to plant a giant oil rig in Vietnam’s Paracel Archipelago in 2014. Again in 2020, when it surrounded Japan’s Senkaku Islands. World opinion and sail-by of naval powers made China retreat.

Europe, Britain, America, Canada, Japan and Australia have denounced China’s occupation of Julian Felipe. Freedom of navigation operations by their warships can send the message to Beijing to desist or be shamed.

The free world can also define and sanction maritime militia aggression for territorial expansion. In China’s case, the militarized militia breaks international law and treaties:

First, the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. UNCLOS allows innocent passage of foreign vessels in a coastal state’s territorial waters or EEZ. Vessels may traverse the waters continuously and expeditiously, not stopping or anchoring except in force majeure. “Passage is innocent so long as it is not prejudicial to the peace, good order or security of the coastal state.” Since there is no storm, the anchoring by 220 Chinese militia vessels is not force majeure. From precedence, it threatens Philippine peace, good order and security.

Second, the 2002 China-ASEAN Declaration of Conduct in the South China Sea. The DOC states: “The Parties undertake to exercise self-restraint in the conduct of activities that would complicate or escalate disputes and affect peace and stability including, among others, refraining from action of inhabiting on the presently uninhabited islands, reefs, shoals, cays and other features and to handle their differences in a constructive manner.” China is doing the opposite.

Third, the Permanent Court of Arbitration verdict of 2016. The PCA outlawed China’s expansionist “nine-dash line.” Upheld was the Philippines’ sovereign right to its EEZ which China violated by taking eight reefs and shoals. No world court grants China jurisdiction over other countries’ EEZs, despite its unilateral claim to the Spratlys. No international ruling recognizes China’s concocted “historical rights.”

China further breaks the Philippines’ Fisheries Code (RA 8550). The law deems mere entry by a foreign fishing vessel in Philippine waters as poaching. Fines and prison terms are specified. An industrial scale Chinese trawler can haul in 12 tons of fish per day. The 220 can steal 2,640 tons or 2,640,000 kilos. Fish are Filipinos’ main source of food protein. China’s presence at Julian Felipe Reef threatens Filipinos’ health and environment. China is taking advantage of Philippine weakness and friendliness.

The reef is named after the composer in 1898 of the Filipino National Anthem. In that hymn Filipinos swear, “Sa manlulupig di ka pasisiil (Ne’er shall invaders trample thy sacred shores).”

Sinovac safety efficacy and price still need clarifying

* * *

            “Gotcha: An Exposé on the Philippine Government” is available as e-book and paperback. Get a free copy of “Chapter 1: Beijing’s Bullying and Duplicity”. Simply subscribe to my newsletter HERE. Book orders also accepted there.

Sinovac safety efficacy and price still need clarifying

Sinovac safety efficacy and price still need clarifying

Sinovac safety efficacy and price still need clarifying

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  • Data profile regarding your online behavior on our website

 

Why We Collect Your Data

We are collecting your data for several reasons:

  • To better understand your needs
  • To improve our services and products
  • To send you promotional emails containing the information we think you will find interesting
  • To contact you to fill out surveys and participate in other types of market research
  • To customize our website according to your online behavior and personal preferences

 

Safeguarding and Securing the Data

jariusbondoc.com is committed to securing your data and keeping it confidential. jariusbondoc.com has done all in its power to prevent data theft, unauthorized access, and disclosure by implementing the latest technologies and software, which help us safeguard all the information we collect online.

 

Our Cookie Policy

Once you agree to allow our website to use cookies, you also agree to use the data it collects regarding your online behavior (analyze web traffic, web pages you spend the most time on, and websites you visit).

The data we collect by using cookies is used to customize our website to your needs. After we use the data for statistical analysis, the data is completely removed from our systems.

Please note that cookies don’t allow us to gain control of your computer in any way. They are strictly used to monitor which pages you find useful and which you do not so that we can provide a better experience for you.

If you want to disable cookies, you can do it by accessing the settings of your internet browser.

 

Links to Other Websites

Our website contains links that lead to other websites. If you click on these links jariusbondoc.com is not held responsible for your data and privacy protection. Visiting those websites is not governed by this privacy policy agreement. Make sure to read the privacy policy documentation of the website you go to from our website.

 

Restricting the Collection of your Personal Data

At some point, you might wish to restrict the use and collection of your personal data. You can achieve this by doing the following:

 

  • When you are filling the forms on the website, make sure to check if there is a box which you can leave unchecked, if you don’t want to disclose your personal information.
  • If you have already agreed to share your information with us, feel free to contact us via email and we will be more than happy to change this for you.

 

jariusbondoc.com will not lease, sell or distribute your personal information to any third parties, unless we have your permission. We might do so if the law forces us. Your personal information will be used when we need to send you promotional materials if you agree to this privacy policy.

 

II. COPYRIGHT NOTICE

All materials contained on this site are protected by the Republic of the Phlippines copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of jariusbondoc.com or in the case of third party materials, the owner of that content. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content.

However, you may download material from jariusbondoc.com on the Web (one machine readable copy and one print copy per page) for your personal, noncommercial use only.

If you wish to use jariusbondoc.com content for commercial purposes, such as for content syndication etc., please contact us at jariusbondoconline@gmail.com.

Links to Websites other than those owned by jariusbondoc.com are offered as a service to readers. The editorial staff of jariusbondoc.com was not involved in their production and is not responsible for their content.

 

III. TERMS OF SERVICE

 

  1. GENERAL RULES AND DEFINITIONS

 

1.1 If you choose to use the jariusbondoc.com service (the “Service”), you will be agreeing to abide by all of the terms and conditions of this Agreement between you and jariusbondoc.com (“jariusbondoc.com “).

 

1.2 jariusbondoc.com may change, add or remove portions of this Agreement at any time, but if it does so, it will post such changes on the Service, or send them to you via e-mail. It is your responsibility to review this Agreement prior to each use of the Site and by continuing to use this Site, you agree to any changes.

 

1.3 If any of these rules or any future changes are unacceptable to you, you may cancel your membership by sending e-mail to jariusbondoconline.com (see section 10.1 regarding termination of service). Your continued use of the service now, or following the posting of notice of any changes in these operating rules, will indicate acceptance by you of such rules, changes, or modifications.

 

1.4 jariusbondoc.com may change, suspend or discontinue any aspect of the Service at any time, including the availability of any Service feature, database, or content. jariusbondoc.com may also impose limits on certain features and services or restrict your access to parts or all of the Service without notice or liability.

 

  1. JARIUSBONDOC.COM CONTENT AND MEMBER SUBMISSIONS

 

2.1 The contents of the jariusbondoc.com are intended for your personal, noncommercial use. All materials published on jariusbondoc.com (including, but not limited to news articles, photographs, images, illustrations, audio clips and video clips, also known as the “Content”) are protected by copyright, and owned or controlled by jariusbondoc.com or the party credited as the provider of the Content. You shall abide by all additional copyright notices, information, or restrictions contained in any Content accessed through the Service.

 

2.2 The Service and its Contents are protected by copyright pursuant to the Republic of the Philippines and international copyright laws. You may not modify, publish, transmit, participate in the transfer or sale of, reproduce (except as provided in Section 2.3 of this Agreement), create new works from, distribute, perform, display, or in any way exploit, any of the Content or the Service (including software) in whole or in part.

 

2.3 You may download or copy the Content and other downloadable items displayed on the Service for personal use only, provided that you maintain all copyright and other notices contained therein. Copying or storing of any Content for other than personal use is expressly prohibited without prior written permission from jariusbondoc.com or the copyright holder identified in the copyright notice contained in the Content.

 

  1. FORUMS, DISCUSSIONS AND USER GENERATED CONTENT

 

3.1 You shall not upload to, or distribute or otherwise publish on the message boards (the “Feedback Section”) any libelous, defamatory, obscene, pornographic, abusive, or otherwise illegal material.

 

3.2 (a)Be courteous. You agree that you will not threaten or verbally abuse jariusbondoc.com columnists and other jariusbondoc.com community Members, use defamatory language, or deliberately disrupt discussions with repetitive messages, meaningless messages or “spam.”

 

3.2 (b) Use respectful language. Like any community, the Feedback Sections will flourish only when our Members feel welcome and safe. You agree not to use language that abuses or discriminates on the basis of race, religion, nationality, gender, sexual preference, age, region, disability, etc. Hate speech of any kind is grounds for immediate and permanent suspension of access to all or part of the Service.

 

3.2 (c) Debate, but don’t attack. In a community full of opinions and preferences, people always disagree. jariusbondoc.com encourages active discussions and welcomes heated debate in our Feedback Sections. But personal attacks are a direct violation of this Agreement and are grounds for immediate and permanent suspension of access to all or part of the Service.

 

3.3 The Feedback Sections shall be used only in a noncommercial manner. You shall not, without the express approval of jariusbondoc.com, distribute or otherwise publish any material containing any solicitation of funds, advertising or solicitation for goods or services.

 

3.4 You are solely responsible for the content of your messages. However, while jariusbondoc.com does not and cannot review every message posted by you on the Forums and is not responsible for the content of these messages, jariusbondoc.com reserves the right to delete, move, or edit messages that it, in its sole discretion, deems abusive, defamatory, obscene, in violation of copyright or trademark laws, or otherwise unacceptable.

 

3.5 You acknowledge that any submissions you make to the Service (i.e., user-generated content including but not limited to: text, video, audio and photographs) (each, a “Submission”) may be edited, removed, modified, published, transmitted, and displayed by jariusbondoc.com and you waive any moral rights you may have in having the material altered or changed in a manner not agreeable to you. You grant jariusbondoc.com a perpetual, nonexclusive, world-wide, royalty free, sub-licensable license to the Submissions, which includes without limitation the right for jariusbondoc.com or any third party it designates, to use, copy, transmit, excerpt, publish, distribute, publicly display, publicly perform, create derivative works of, host, index, cache, tag, encode, modify and adapt (including without limitation the right to adapt to streaming, downloading, broadcast, mobile, digital, thumbnail, scanning or other technologies) in any form or media now known or hereinafter developed, any Submission posted by you on or to jariusbondoc.com or any other website owned by it, including any Submission posted on jariusbondoc.com through a third party.

 

3.6 By submitting an entry to jariusbondoc.com’s Readers’ Corner, you are consenting to its display on the site and for related online and offline promotional uses.

 

  1. ACCESS AND AVAILABILITY OF SERVICE AND LINKS

 

4.1 jariusbondoc.com contains links to other related World Wide Web Internet sites, resources, and sponsors of jariusbondoc.com. Since jariusbondoc.com is not responsible for the availability of these outside resources, or their contents, you should direct any concerns regarding any external link to the site administrator or Webmaster of such site.

 

  1. REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES

 

5.1 You represent, warrant and covenant (a) that no materials of any kind submitted through your account will (i) violate, plagiarize, or infringe upon the rights of any third party, including copyright, trademark, privacy or other personal or proprietary rights; or (ii) contain libelous or otherwise unlawful material; and (b) that you are at least thirteen years old. You hereby indemnify, defend and hold harmless jariusbondoc.com, and all officers, directors, owners, agents, information providers, affiliates, licensors and licensees (collectively, the “Indemnified Parties”) from and against any and all liability and costs, including, without limitation, reasonable attorneys’ fees, incurred by the Indemnified Parties in connection with any claim arising out of any breach by you or any user of your account of this Agreement or the foregoing representations, warranties and covenants. You shall cooperate as fully as reasonably required in the defense of any such claim. jariusbondoc.com reserves the right, at its own expense, to assume the exclusive defense and control of any matter subject to indemnification by you.

 

5.2 jariusbondoc.com does not represent or endorse the accuracy or reliability of any advice, opinion, statement, or other information displayed, uploaded, or distributed through the Service by any user, information provider or any other person or entity. You acknowledge that any reliance upon any such opinion, advice, statement, memorandum, or information shall be at your sole risk. THE SERVICE AND ALL DOWNLOADABLE SOFTWARE ARE DISTRIBUTED ON AN “AS IS” BASIS WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, WARRANTIES OF TITLE OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. YOU HEREBY ACKNOWLEDGE THAT USE OF THE SERVICE IS AT YOUR SOLE RISK.

 

  1. COMMUNICATIONS BETWEEN JARIUSBONDOC.COM AND MEMBERS

 

6.1 If you indicate on your registration form that you want to receive such information, jariusbondoc.com, its owners and assigns, will allow certain third party vendors to provide you with information about products and services.

 

6.2 jariusbondoc.com reserves the right to send electronic mail to you for the purpose of informing you of changes or additions to the Service.

 

6.3 jariusbondoc.com reserves the right to disclose information about your usage and demographics, provided that it will not reveal your personal identity in connection with the disclosure of such information. Advertisers and/or Licensees on our Web site may collect and share information about you only if you indicate your acceptance. For more information please read the Privacy Policy of jariusbondoc.com.

 

6.4 jariusbondoc.com may contact you via e-mail regarding your participation in user surveys, asking for feedback on the Website and existing or prospective products and services. This information will be used to improve our Website and better understand our users, and any information we obtain in such surveys will not be shared with third parties, except in aggregate form.

 

  1. TERMINATION

 

 

7.1 jariusbondoc.com may, in its sole discretion, terminate or suspend your access to all or part of the Service for any reason, including, without limitation, breach or assignment of this Agreement.

 

  1. MISCELLANEOUS

 

8.1 This Agreement has been made in and shall be construed and enforced in accordance with the Republic of the Philippines law. Any action to enforce this agreement shall be brought in the courts located in Manila, Philippines.

 

8.2 Notwithstanding any of the foregoing, nothing in this Terms of Service will serve to preempt the promises made in jariusbondoc.com Privacy Policy.

 

8.3 Correspondence should be sent to jariusbondoconline.com.

 

8.4 You agree to report any copyright violations of the Terms of Service to jariusbondoc.com as soon as you become aware of them. In the event you have a claim of copyright infringement with respect to material that is contained in the jariusbondoc.com service, please notify jariusbondoconline.com. This Terms of Service was last updated on November 7, 2020.