MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines has reaffirmed its position against the use of force in the disputed South China Sea after Chinese law enforcement personnel reportedly attacked Vietnamese fishermen over the weekend.
The Department of Foreign Affairs said on Friday, October 4, that the Philippines was "aware of the serious incident" that occurred on Sunday, September 29, "involving Vietnamese fishermen and Chinese maritime authorities."
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"The Philippines has consistently denounced the use of force, aggression and intimidation in the South China Sea, and emphasized the need for actors to exercise genuine self-restraint," the foreign affairs department said.
"It is a paramount obligation to ensure the safety at sea of vessels and their crew, especially fisherfolk," it added.
This comes after Vietnam on Wednesday, October 2, condemned what it called the "brutal behavior of Chinese law enforcement forces" against Vietnamese fishermen intercepted near the contested Paracel Islands in the South China Sea.
The resource-rich Paracel Islands are claimed by China, Taiwan, and Vietnam, but Beijing has controlled the islands since seizing it from South Vietnam in a 1974 conflict.
The 10 Vietnamese fishermen were reportedly attacked with iron bars and robbed of thousands of dollars' worth of fish and equipment.
China’s foreign ministry said the Vietnamese fishing boats were illegally operating in the waters around the Paracel Islands without permission from Beijing, prompting authorities to take action to halt their activities.
Chinese forces' latest actions "seriously violated Vietnam's sovereignty," according to Vietnam's foreign ministry.
The DFA stressed the need for disputes in the South China Sea — which China claims in its near-entirety — "to be managed peacefully and in accordance with international law, particularly UNCLOS."
The violent incident comes weeks after Chinese army Lieutenant General He Lei said Beijing would "crush" any foreign incursion into its sovereign territory, including in the South China Sea.
Beijing has typically taken a softer stance on Vietnam's attempts to advance its claims in the South China Sea compared to its sharp rebukes of the Philippines' presence in the disputed waters.
Vietnam and the Philippines are one of several claimants to parts of the South China Sea and themselves have overlapping claims to the Spratlys Islands.
This year, Vietnam and the Philippines ramped up their defense cooperation and had forged a key defense pact in August that focuses on humanitarian and disaster response at sea, among others