By Henry Empeño | July 23, 2024

MASINLOC, Zambales — The militant fishers’ group Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas (Pamalakaya) panned the third State of the Nation Address (SONA) of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Monday, saying the 90-minute discourse was found wanting for concrete action on behalf of fishermen displaced by the ongoing row over the West Philippine Sea (WPS).

“Dismayado kami na nananatili pa ring talinghaga ang pag-angkin ng pamahalaan sa ating teritoryo. Walang nabanggit kung paano konkreto at mapayapang igigiit ang ating pambansang soberenya at karapatan sa pangisdaan (We are dismayed that our territorial claims remain a metaphor for the government. There was no mention of how our national sovereignty and right to fishing grounds could be asserted concretely and peacefully),” said Pamalakaya national vice chairman Ronnel Arambulo in a statement.

Pamalakaya was reacting to SONA pronouncements by Pres. Marcos that the government will assert Philippine rights and interests over the disputed waterway.

“Ang West Philippine Sea ay hindi kathang-isip lang natin. Ito ay atin. At ito ay mananatiling atin, hangga’t nag-aalab ang diwa ng ating mahal na bansang Pilipinas (The West Philippine Sea is not just a figment of our imagination. It is ours. And it will remain ours as long our fervor burns for our beloved country the Philippines),” Marcos said.

The fishermen’s group, however, saw this as mere lip service. Countered Arambulo: “Lalong hindi kathang -isip ang kahirapang dinaranas ng mga mangingisdang Pilipino sa umiigting na tension sa West Philippine Sea. Ito ay araw-araw na pakikipagsapalaran ng mga mangingisda na hindi maresolba sa simpleng mabulaklak na buladas sa SONA ni Pangulong Marcos.”

Arambulo said the hardship experienced daily by Filipino fishermen because of the tension in WPS is not the least imaginary, and that it cannot be resolved by any flowery rhetoric in the SONA.

Arambulo added that even as Filipino fishers have lost around 60 percent of their income due to the China’s virtual control of the WPS, the government has not come up with concrete plans to ensure that local fishermen could re-access their traditional fishing grounds.

Arambulo also criticized Marcos for not giving attention to the reclamation in Manila Bay, which he said continues to threaten the life and livelihood of fishermen in the surrounding areas, as well as the country’s food security.

Joey Marabe, Pamalakaya director for Zambales, said the government should move for a peaceful resolution of the sea row with China based on the Hague Tribunal’s South China Sea ruling.

“We have a strong legal basis to peacefully and diplomatically press for our rights over the West Philippine Sea. But the Marcos administration is letting this pass and instead relies on foreign military intervention that only exacerbates the tension,” Marabe rued in Filipino.

On Monday, another fishermen’s group here criticized the lack of concrete program for displaced fishermen.

Leonardo Cuaresma, president of the New Masinloc Fishermen’s Association (NMFA), said they were disappointed with Marcos’s SONA as it bore no significance to locals who can no longer fish at the Scarborough Shoal, or Bajo de Masinloc, as China recently tightened its control over the rich fishing ground.

Cuaresma said it is also necessary for the government to look at the economic plight of displaced fishermen because their situation has become critical due to lost livelihood. 

PHOTO:

Pamalakaya director for Zambales Joey Marabe (right) and other fishermen express their position on the WPS row, as Pres. Marcos presented his third SONA on Monday.  (Pamalakaya photo)