South China Sea: Philippine civilian boat convoy drops plan to sail closer to Scarborough Shoal

Organisers said they managed to deliver supplies to Filipino fishers despite ‘China’s massive blockade’

A reconnaissance flight saw 19 Chinese vessels including a warship patrolling around the shoal as the aid convoy pressed ahead with the final leg of its mission

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Philippine fishermen and volunteers from a civilian group arrive at a meeting point in the South China Sea on May 15. Photo: AFP

Published: 10:30am, 16 May 2024Updated: 2:06pm, 16 May 2024

A convoy of boats carrying Philippine civilians bearing supplies for Filipino fishers has abandoned plans to sail closer to a China-held reef off the Southeast Asian country, organisers said on Thursday, after one of their boats was “constantly shadowed” by a Chinese vessel.

The Atin Ito (“This Is Ours”) coalition convoy set sail on Wednesday to distribute fuel and food to fishers and assert Philippine rights in the disputed South China Sea. The trip comes two weeks after China coastguard vessels used water cannon against two Philippine government boats near Scarborough Shoal.

“Atin Ito will now proceed to conduct the final leg of supply distribution in the current area, as there are no more Filipino fishers in BdM after they were reportedly sent away by various Chinese vessels,” the non-governmental coalition’s spokesman Emman Hizon told reporters on Thursday, using an acronym for the disputed shoal known to Filipinos as Bajo de Masinloc.

The convoy learned from fishermen on boats in the area via radio “that they had been chased away by the Chinese,” Hizon said.

But he said the group’s “advance team” distributed fuel and other assistance to Filipino fishermen a day earlier about 46-56km (29-35 miles) from the shoal, declaring “mission accomplished”.

The advance team boat, which returned to a Philippine port on Thursday morning, was “able to distribute aid despite being constantly shadowed by a Chinese navy vessel”, Hizon said.

A reconnaissance flight saw 19 Chinese vessels including a warship and eight coastguard vessels patrolling around the shoal on Wednesday, the Philippine coastguard said.