South China Sea: Philippine fishers on frontline of China’s battle for disputed waters

Fishing ground near Scarborough Shoal, tapped by generations of Filipinos, is one of many potential flashpoints for conflict in the South China Sea

China often invokes the so-called nine-dash line, a vague delineation based on maps from the 1940s, to justify its claims in the disputed waters

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Filipino fishermen -- on frontline of Beijing’s battle in disputed South China Sea -- prepare their nets for another day’s work after unloading their tuna catch. Photo: AP/File

Published: 3:15pm, 5 Oct 2022Updated: 3:25pm, 5 Oct 2022

Filipino fisherman Mariel Villamonte had spent years plying the turquoise waters of Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea for snapper and grouper – until a Chinese coastguard vessel water cannoned his boat.

That was in 2012, around the time China snatched control of the small ring of reefs from the Philippines, and he has not dared go back.

“Their ships are made of steel, ours are made of wood,” said Villamonte, now 31, recalling how two Chinese vessels chased his outrigger before blasting it with high-pressure water.

The fishing ground, tapped by generations of Filipinos, is one of many potential flashpoints for military conflict over the South China Sea.

Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea. Photo: SCMP

Mainland China and Taiwan both claim sovereignty over almost the entire sea, while the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei have competing claims to parts of it.

Trillions of dollars worth of ship-borne trade passes through the waterway annually and naval vessels from the United States and Western allies sail through it regularly.