‘We are not at war with China’: Philippines’ fishermen militia plan put on pause

Defence officials said last month they were considering recruiting fishermen into South China Sea seaborne militia units similar to those used by Beijing

But the plan has not been ‘finalised’ as Manila is keen to avoid ‘actions that would be misconstrued‘, National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon said

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A fisherman rows to shore in Manila Bay on October 31. Photo: Xinhua

Published: 9:00pm, 4 Nov 2020Updated: 8:16am, 5 Nov 2020

Plans to deploy Filipino fishermen as militia forces in the South China Sea have been put on hold by the Philippines’ government as “we are not at war with China”, presidential National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon said on Wednesday.

Philippine defence officials had mooted the idea in a Senate finance committee hearing last month, saying they were considering creating ostensibly civilian maritime militia units similar to China’s “little blue men”.

But at the first-ever media briefing conducted by the Presidential Communications Operations Office on the South China Sea on Wednesday, Esperon said he had “a preference for forces that are better equipped rather than ragtag forces”, while noting that some fishermen are already serving as unarmed volunteer sea patrols in coastal areas.

The former military chief said plans to deploy fishermen in contested waters had not been “finalised” because of a desire to avoid “actions that would be misconstrued as miscalculations” and the fact that “we want them not as militias but as good fishermen”.

FIshermen hoist a net to land a catch in Pangasinan province, the Philippines. Photo: Bloomberg

Filipino fishermen only get 7.3 per cent of their total yearly catch from the South China Sea, Esperon said, even though it is one of Asia’s richest fishing grounds. He said the government was studying whether to deploy the coastguard and navy to protect fishermen in the disputed waterway.