2 Pinoys dead as vessel capsizes off Scarborough

China Coast Guard rescues 15 crewmen; 4 still missing

MANILA, Philippines — Two Filipino sailors were reported dead while four are still missing after a Singapore-flagged cargo vessel with 21 all-Filipino crew members capsized yesterday near Scarborough (Panatag) Shoal, the Chinese embassy confirmed.

The Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s Southern Theater Command said it launched a joint rescue operation for a capsized cargo ship M/V Devon Bay in waters near Panatag Shoal, also called Bajo de Masinloc.

Meanwhile, the Philippine Coast Guard sent BRP Teresa Magbanua, BRP Cape San Agustin and two PCG aircraft to assist the Filipino crew members from the capsized vessel, which sailed from Gutalac, Zamboanga del Sur carrying iron ore and was headed for Yangjiang, China.

The Chinese embassy said as of 12:30 p.m. yesterday, 17 were rescued, of whom 14 were in stable condition.

It noted that two crew members have been confirmed dead and one was in critical condition and under emergency medical treatment.

Panatag Shoal is one of Asia’s most contested maritime features and has long been a flashpoint over sovereignty claims and fishing rights in the South China Sea.

According to the PCG, Singaporean-flagged M/V Devon Bay’s last known position was recorded at approximately 141 nautical miles west of Sabangan Point, Ango Bay, Pangasinan at around 8:30 p.m. on Jan. 22.

The PCG said it received a distress report that the vessel was already listing at approximately 25 degrees.

The Coast Guard maintained that the last known position of Devon Bay was within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone where all ships may pass under high seas freedom of navigation as accorded by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

It added that freedom, however, does not allow law enforcement patrols by foreign vessels.

PCG spokesperson Capt. Noemie Cayabyab said the Coast Guard continues to closely monitor the situation and remains fully committed to ensuring the safety of the remaining crew.

Efforts to silence?

For PCG spokesman on West Philippine Sea issues Commodore Jay Tarriela, China’s decision to summon the Philippine ambassador over his remarks is part of Beijing’s design to silence the Philippines’ transparency efforts in the WPS.

“It proves that our transparency efforts in exposing Chinese aggression are actually working. It also shows that China is more afraid on making the world know about their behavior at sea, especially in South China Sea,” he told “Storycon” on One News yesterday.

Beijing has summoned Philippine Ambassador Jaime FlorCruz, supposedly over Tarriela’s recent remarks, including a presentation that showed caricatures of Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said the head of the ministry’s Department of Asian Affairs summoned FlorCruz on Thursday to lodge a diplomatic protest.

“It must be stressed that the Philippine side has long turned a blind eye to its Coast Guard spokesperson making inflammatory, confrontational, misleading and baseless remarks against China on maritime issues. China does not accept that,” Guo said at a press conference.

“Time for the Philippine side to undo the negative impact as soon as possible and stop tolerating the smear campaign and provocations, lest they disrupt normal diplomatic communication or further harm bilateral relations,” he stressed.

Tarriela believes that his presentation was not the main reason for the summons.

“Even before I had the chance to deliver that PowerPoint presentation… I’m already receiving comments from the Chinese embassy… They just want to silence the transparency, and they don’t want us to expose their aggression anymore,” he said.

“Threatening a public servant for telling the truth will not intimidate us,” Tarriela noted. — Bella Cariaso, Janvic Mateo, Ghio Ong