NSC: Marcos wants ‘civilianize’ approach to Ayungin tension

The Philippines will push for a non-military approach to address the tension surrounding the Ayungin shoal in the West Philippine Sea as ordered by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., an official of the National Security Council said Wednesday.

In a television interview, National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea spokesperson, NSC Undersecretary Jonathan Malaya, said the Chinese maritime militia has been acting in concert with the Chinese Coast Guard as observed by the Philippines during the country's latest resupply mission in Ayungin Shoal.

"It was no longer a support capacity, they were now actively blocking our ships. We consider them now as part of the Chinese Coast Guard, which is under the Chinese military commission. So it's really part of the apparatus of the Communist Party of China," he said.

Malaya explained that the CMM was part of China's military infrastructure, despite the international concept that the Coast Guard was civilian in nature.

"Because in all countries in the world, coast guard, though uninformed, are part of a civilian service," he said.

"But China has a different system, as we all know they have a different political system, they are technically an authoritarian state run by a ruling Communist Party of China and they have placed their coast guard and the CMM under the Chinese Military Commission so they are technically part of the military infrastructure," he added.

Malaya was asked if the Philippines should respond not just with the Philippine Coast Guard but with the Philippine Navy to counter the CMM.

"That is a decision that has to be made by higher authorities because we want to keep the tension low in the WPS and there is an instruction from the President to civilianize the approach to Ayungin Shoal. So it's going to be Coast Guard against Coast Guard, and the Navy is only in support," Malaya said.

In all of these resupply missions, Malaya said there are always two Navy ships, 20 to 30 nautical miles away, coming with the Philippine supply vessels "just in case something happens."

On the other hand, Malaya said China has yet to officially deny the reported coral harvesting in the WPS.

"In so far as the Philippine government is concerned, there has no, up to this day, official denial coming from the Chinese government that they were not responsible for the degradation in both shoals," he said.

NSC Secretary Eduardo Año serves as the chairperson of the NTF-WPS.