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27/09/2020

PAG-ASA GETS UPGRADE
BY: FRANCES MANGOSING
JUNE 13, 2020

PAG-ASA ISLAND, West Philippine Sea—Beijing had tried to stop it, but a long-imagined development plan in the biggest and most strategically important Philippine-held island in the disputed Spratlys is finally taking shape.

As the Philippine Air Force C-130 plane approached Pag-asa Island, it flew past the western tip of the crumbling runway to allow its passengers—defense and military officials as well as journalists—an aerial view of the ongoing major development projects.

Pag-asa’s biggest major infrastructure upgrade since the 1970s: the sheltered port and beaching ramp. (LYN RILLON)

It was May 28 on Pag-asa (“hope” in Filipino). The government officials were visiting the island to inspect a new beaching ramp ahead of its inauguration on June 9. They carefully surveyed the ramp, a project overseen by the Department of National Defense, in the scorching summer heat, and appeared to be proud and satisfied with the results.

Philippine Air Force takes defense and military officials on a trip to Pag-asa Island on May 28 for the technical inspection of the beaching ramp. (LYN RILLON)

Yesterday, Independence Day, was equally momentous: A sheltered port, a separate project of the Department of Transportation, was turned over to the municipality of Kalayaan, which includes Pag-asa.

The significance of the handover was not lost on Kalayaan officials, occurring as it did on the day that celebrates Philippine sovereignty. The new structures were also seen to provide hope to the settlers and troops who have had to endure difficult living conditions on the island.

SHELTERED PORT. Another major project recently completed on Pag-asa, aside from the beaching ramp. (LYN RILLON)

For decades, those traveling to and from Pag-asa by ship had to take a small boat because of the absence of a pier. Not anymore.

The beaching ramp will also allow the smooth transport of heavy construction materials to repair the island’s runway and rehabilitate other facilities. The sheltered port will serve as a safe harbor for visiting civilian and government vessels, especially during bad weather.

Pag-asa, internationally known as Thitu, is the only Philippine-controlled outpost in the Spratlys that has civilian inhabitants. The other eight islands and reefs are guarded by the military.

‘Left behind’
The Philippines did not undertake any major upgrade on Pag-asa for many years to avoid upsetting its neighbors, each with claims to portions of the South China Sea. The repair of the runway was put on hold during the term of President Benigno Aquino III pending the outcome of the Philippines’ case against China at the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Netherlands.

Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, 4th from right, stands with other military and local officials during a short ceremony at the newly built beach rampway at the Philippine-claimed island of Pag-asa, also known as Thitu, in the disputed South China Sea on Tuesday June 9, 2020.(Department of National Defense PAS via AP)

The Philippines lodged the case in 2013 questioning China’s excessive claim over the South China Sea. In 2016, the United Nations-backed arbitral tribunal ruled that China’s claim on the strength of its “nine-dash line” had no basis.

China has yet to acknowledge the ruling and President Duterte, Aquino’s successor, maintains a friendly relationship with Beijing in exchange for economic assistance and investments.

But less than a year after the ruling was issued, the Philippine government decided to proceed with longtime plans to develop Pag-asa. It allocated a budget of P1.6 billion for the island’s rehabilitation and other upgrades.

“We’re being left behind. We are the last claimants here who are doing nothing to the islands we are occupying,” Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said in April 2017 when he visited Pag-asa to inspect the facilities that needed improvement.

Philippine Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana tours the Philippine-claimed Pag-asa (Thitu) Island during his visit to the Spratlys Group of islands off the disputed South China Sea in western Philippines Friday, April 21, 2017. The visit Friday was aimed to assert the country’s claim to the heartland of a disputed area where China is believed to have added missiles on man-made islands.(Photo by BULLIT MARQUEZ / AP)

He said he also expected the Chinese government to protest the construction activities but that he did not see it as a reason to hold off on the government’s plans.

At a forum in November 2018, Lorenzana said China, the most aggressive claimant in the South China Sea, had tried to stop his visit and the Philippines’ planned upgrades on Pag-asa.

“When he learned that we are going to repair our runway on Pag-asa, he came to me and said, ‘No,’” the defense chief said, recalling his meeting with then Chinese Ambassador to Manila Zhao Jianhua.

“When he learned that I was going to Pag-asa, he came to me and tried to dissuade me from going there. He gave a lot of reasons. [He said] some countries might follow me to go to the islands. No defense secretary has gone there before, I would be the first to go, and we went there,” Lorenzana said.

2-year effort
As it happened, the Philippine government went ahead with the planned construction despite the attempts of the Chinese government to stop it. But what seemed a simple task of building a beaching ramp to jump-start the repair of the runway dragged on for about two years.

International security analysts believe that the presence of Chinese vessels around Pag-asa, suspected to be part of Beijing’s maritime militia, hampered the construction of the beaching ramp and sheltered port.

Lorenzana has denied this several times, saying that the vessels’ presence did not interfere with the rehabilitation of the island. Construction work did not begin until mid-2018, reportedly due to harsh weather conditions.

Sea waves are especially strong around the island during the southwest monsoon season, making it difficult to undertake construction or deliver heavy equipment.

Rey Sagum of Luzviminda Engineering Construction, the contractor of the P268-million beaching ramp, explained that the completion of the project was pushed back a few times due to bad weather.

The transport of construction materials, manpower, food and other supplies to the 37-hectare island located 480 kilometers west of Puerto Princesa City, Palawan, was a challenge, too. A few setbacks in building the ramp also forced a return to the drawing board for a revision of plans.

For example, Sagum said, breasting dolphins—additional structures that help berth ships more securely—had to be built twice because giant sea waves destroyed their initial construction work.

Bad weather and rough seas delayed the construction of the beaching ramp. (LYN RILLON)

The beaching ramp is already operational and was used way ahead of its official launch.

On May 13, the heavy landing craft BRP Ivatan made a historic docking at the new port when it ferried provisions and a new batch of troops deployed to Pag-asa.

Long-held dream
Construction of the P450-million sheltered port by Mamsar Construction began in late 2018 and also faced setbacks due to erratic weather conditions, although on a lesser scale.

The new seaport is a realization of a long-held dream of former two-term Kalayaan Mayor Eugenio Bito-onon Jr., who had been vocal in the past about his wish for a harbor and had painstakingly searched for funds for it.

“The sheltered harbor, that’s really my dream for Pag-asa,” Bito-onon said, speaking in Filipino. “This will be a big deal once it’s finished. It will greatly improve the transport of goods, people and services in and out of Pag-asa. It will also boost investments in fisheries and seasonal tourism.”

Coincidentally, the launch of the seaport was held a day after the 42nd anniversary of the creation of the municipality of Kalayaan.

But while the new infrastructures will remarkably change the way of life on Pag-asa, it would also help if the government boosted its military defenses in the area, said maritime expert Jay Batongbacal of the University of the Philippines’ Institute for Maritime Affairs and the Law of the Sea.

“The islands are small and could easily be taken by force or coercion. For the Philippines, it would simply mean catching up with China and other claimants, which have over the years invested far more in the security of the individual islands/installations than the Philippines,” he said.

DEFENSIVE PRESENCE. The military installation on the island is named in honor of a Philippine Navy captain who served during World War II and Korean War. (LYN RILLON)

Runway next
With the completion of the beaching ramp and the sheltered port on Pag-asa, the government is now setting its sights on the repair of the decrepit runway, which mirrors the neglected state of the Philippine-held islands and reefs in the West Philippine Sea.

“We can now improve further our facilities on Pag-asa, such as [making] the dirt runway into a concrete one and making the island a jumping board to the other eight islands that we possess,” Lorenzana said.

Pag-asa’s 1.3-kilometer airstrip, called Rancudo Air Field, is grassy and unpaved, with eroded tips. Only 850 meters of it is currently usable, posing a challenge to pilots to land big military planes.

The next phase of Pag-asa Island rehabilitation project is the repair of the unpaved runway. (LYN RILLON)

At least three days straight of sunny weather and zero rainfall are needed to be able to land planes on the island. Rain turns the runway to mud, making it too soft for planes to land on.

Ironically, the Philippines was the first of the claimant-countries in the South China Sea to build an airstrip in the Spratlys in the 1970s. It has since lagged behind in development.

Fourteen miles away from Pag-asa is Zamora (Subi) Reef, which China has transformed into a sprawling military outpost with a 3-km runway, hangars, radars, missile shelters and weapons systems. It’s just one of the seven massive Chinese man-made islands in the Spratlys.

Zamora reef pag-asa island philippines
China-occupied Zamora (Subi) Reef, Pag-asa Island’s closest neighbor, is far more advanced in developing its outpost. (LYN RILLON)

Philippine defense officials familiar with the planned rehabilitation of the runway said the project may be awarded in the next few months.

The project—to be overseen by the Philippine Air Force—will cover the paving and restoration of the runway to its original length and the construction of a parking apron.

Lorenzana estimated project completion within a year after the singing of the contract.

These planned upgrades on Pag-asa bolster the Philippines’ posture in the face of China’s aggression in the West Philippine Sea, according to the defense chief.

“It helps solidify our claims,” he said.

27/09/2020

HOLDING GROUND ON PAG-ASA ISLAND

By Francis Mangosing
June 12, 2020

PAG-ASA ISLAND, West Philippine Sea—
Chinese ships in their line of vision have become part of the daily life of Filipinos who call this speck of land smack in the middle of the South China Sea home.

The island shelters some 100 Filipinos on the front line of a potentially dangerous international maritime dispute.

The Philippine government has just concluded two important rehabilitation projects on Pag-asa: a beaching ramp (overseen by the Department of National Defense) that was inaugurated on June 9, and a sheltered port (supervised by the Department of Transportation) that is to be turned over to the local government today, Independence Day.

On May 28, the Inquirer joined government officials in a Philippine Air Force C-130 plane on a visit to Pag-asa. After the plane landed, at least five Chinese vessels believed to be part of a maritime militia and a China Coast Guard ship moved from its position at the edge of the western portion of the runway but still stayed relatively close. The Inquirer was told that the nearest Chinese vessel was 7.4 kilometers (4 nautical miles) away.

Chinese installations on Zamora Reef visible from an old watch tower on Pag-asa Island, Kalayaan Group of Islands, Palawan. INQUIRER PHOTO/LYN RILLON

Beyond the horizon 22.5 kilometers (14 miles) southwest of the island lies a mini city with tall buildings quite visible even from afar. Zamora Reef, internationally known as Subi Reef, is now a massive military outpost that China built at a remarkable speed a few years back.

Pag-asa’s mighty neighbor claims almost the entire resource-rich South China Sea as its territory, and is accused of fueling tensions and escalating aggression amid the new coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic.

Sovereignty
But the island’s residents try to live as normally as they can, banishing worries that conflict may break out one day.

Forty-seven families and a small military contingent live on this island internationally known as Thitu, not only because it is now home to them but also to assert Philippine sovereignty over it.

Soldiers on a dilapidated watch tower in Pag-asa Island, Kalayaan Group of Islands, Palawan.
INQUIRER PHOTO/LYN RILLON

Pag-asa is the seat of power of Palawan province’s municipality of Kalayaan that was established in the late 1970s to assert the Philippines’ claim to the Spratlys, an archipelago of more than 700 reefs, islets and atolls in the South China Sea.

“Sometimes we think we would be attacked,” said Arzel Deliban, a resident and municipal government employee of 11 years, speaking in Filipino. “But there are many soldiers here. It’s impossible that it won’t reach the higher-ups.”

A small number of soldiers from the Philippine Navy and Air Force are deployed here on rotation every three to six months.

Air Force personnel deployed on Pag-asa Island, Palawan. INQUIRER PHOTO/LYN RILLON

It seems news is more advanced—and alarming—on the mainland, said Ruvielyn Hugo, a Pag-asa resident of six years. “If you try staying here, it’s peaceful. Nothing’s scary.”

Diplomatic protests
The constant presence of Chinese trawlers in the area was the subject of diplomatic protests by the Philippine government in the past year. But they never went away completely.

The civilian nature of the vessels, said to be controlled by the Chinese government, makes it difficult for any South China Sea claimant to take China to task directly. Analysts say Beijing uses these supposed militia vessels to pursue its objectives short of conventional war.

When the Chinese vessels get too close, the Philippine military or Coast Guard wards them off, the residents said.

Deliban, who goes fishing when he is not doing office work, said the Chinese vessels used to sound their horns whenever Filipino fishermen approached the sandbars near Pag-asa. But things have changed.

Last year, Filipinos fishing at a sandbar called Secret Island were constantly honked at. “Now there’s no honking. Even if we fish here, they don’t honk anymore,” he said.

At night, the Chinese vessels are brightly lit, Deliban said. “In the afternoon, they begin to disperse and circle the island. We’ve gotten used to that already.”According to Eugenio Bito-onon Jr., a former mayor of Kalayaan who now lives in Puerto Princesa City in Palawan, sightings of Chinese vessels off the island have become “normal.”

“I doubt that China’s militia would disappear,” he said in Filipino. “The man-made island Subi Reef is too big. That means it’s normal every day to see many Chinese fishing boats, including their militia and coast guard, anchoring near Pag-asa.”

Bito-onon said there were no such ship sightings before the “reclamation.”

Complacency
The number of vessels varies daily, but they have rarely disappeared since 2018, when the Philippine government began rehabilitation work on Pag-asa. Early this year, as many as 76 vessels were spotted near Pag-asa on a single day.

A Chinese vessel suspected to be part of maritime militia as seen from PAF C-130T aircraft 5040 on May 28, 2020. INQUIRER PHOTO/LYN RILLON

On the other hand, said Lt. Cmdr. Manuel Zapanta, Pag-asa Island commander, the number of Chinese vessels near the island has dwindled in recent weeks. But he was unsure if it would be for the good.

Maritime expert Jay Batongbacal of the University of the Philippines’ Institute for Maritime Affairs and the Law of the Sea warned against the residents’ apparent acceptance of the presence of Chinese vessels as part of a new reality.

“That’s complacency setting in—accepting the situation as normal and letting their guard down. Worst-case scenario is they (Chinese) will suddenly land and take over the place without a shot. It’s possible. It’s like counterinsurgency warfare,” Batongbacal said.

Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said that while the locals had come to regard the Chinese vessels as a permanent fixture, he himself believed that action should still be taken, at least through diplomatic channels.

“If they come near our islands, we protest. But remember that Subi Reef, the Chinese-built island from reefs, is just 14 miles (22.5 km) away. Midway is 7 miles (11 km). Anything closer and we protest,” Lorenzana said.

400 km from the city
The 37-hectare Pag-asa is more than 400 km from the mainland and is the only one of the nine islands and reefs occupied by the Philippines in the Spratlys that has civilian dwellers. The rest are manned by the military.

For the government, the presence of civilians is an exercise of sovereignty. But for the settlers, it is a matter of their own survival.

Marilou Asiado, a mother of two, moved to Pag-asa five years ago with her family. “My husband’s elder brother said we should try coming here,” she said. “There’s no job shortage, even in construction.”

All the residents, like Asiado, get free food and housing from the government. They live in small bungalows built from light materials or concrete. Some families have their own private dwellings; some (up to three households) share a house.Couples have three children on the average.

The free supplies shipped from the mainland every quarter comprise nearly 30 kilograms of rice, condiments and canned goods. These are complemented by a municipal store that offers basic necessities, the costs of which the residents can cover or get deducted from their pay.

The residents are encouraged to do backyard vegetable gardening using garden soil from the mainland. They may also go fishing for their own consumption or livelihood.

They use wood or charcoal from the mainland for cooking.

Unlike its neighbors, Pag-asa has trees and fresh water that can support human life. There is a filtration facility that provides clean drinking water for its residents.The island has a longtime zero crime rate, although two cops are stationed on the island to keep the peace.

No regrets
Asiado said she did not regret her decision to move to Pag-asa because it eased a financial burden that made life on the mainland difficult. In fact, she has not left Pag-asa since 2018, even if ships owned by the municipality regularly come by to transport residents to and from the island. During summer, ships sometimes come every two weeks, with the frequency dropping when the rains come.

Hugo, meanwhile, recently spent three months on the mainland before heading back to Pag-asa. She said residents like herself could choose how long they wanted to be away.

Life is simple and quiet on Pag-asa and options for communication and recreation are limited.

Without free wireless internet, communication with the outside world is difficult and costly. At the time of the Inquirer’s visit, there was no local mobile signal available on the island.

The residents said they sometimes relied on satellite signal, which was considered a luxury; other times, they depended on their foreign neighbors’ mobile networks.

Shortly before the C-130 plane touched down on Pag-asa, the Inquirer received two generic welcome text messages for mobile and data roaming—a seeming subtle reminder of the overlapping territorial claims among neighboring countries. Part of the first message read: “Welcome to China!” The next message said: “Welcome to Vietnam!”

A Philippine Air Force C-130 lands on Pag-asa on ay 28, bringing Navy and defense officials along with Inquirer journalists for an inspection of major infrastructure projects on the island. INQUIRER PHOTO/ LYN RILLON

Free Wi-Fi was only made available on the island starting August 2019. Residents can avail themselves of cable TV if they can afford it. Electricity runs for only four hours a day.

The men mostly turn to sports, like basketball, or go fishing to keep themselves busy when they are not at work.

A small school for children was built in 2012—a move that China protested for being a supposed affront to its territorial claims. The school is for students from kindergarten to sixth grade. To continue their studies, graduates have to go to the mainland.

There are no more than 30 students being tended to by two multigrade teachers. As in the rest of the nation, classes have been on hold because of the new coronavirus—even if there is no recorded case of Covid-19 here.

Isolation and hope
The settlers spend their idle time hanging out with their neighbors, playing music, or attending each other’s small birthday celebrations. Swimming is also an option.

Boredom and isolation pose a huge challenge, but for Hugo, “if your entire family is here, it’s not difficult at all.”

“But if you’re single, maybe you’ll get bored. It’s normal,” she said.

Most days are monotonous and calm, and the future is uncertain on this tropical island that is hardly paradise. But its residents appear undaunted: Hope is what keeps them going.

The beaching ramp and the sheltered port, the first major infrastructure on Pag-asa in decades, are seen to drastically change the way of life of both the residents and the troops.

Fishermen dry out sapsap fish on the new sheltered port on Pag-asa Island, Kalayaan Group of Islands, Palawan. INQUIRER PHOTO/LYN RILLON

Kalayaan Mayor Roberto del Mundo said China or other claimants had so far not interfered with the municipality’s development plans. “We don’t think about the danger anymore.

Our projects just continue,” said Del Mundo, who holds office in Puerto Princesa but travels to the island when necessary.

With the rehabilitation projects, the municipality can now proceed with tourism and development plans that should have been carried out long ago but were difficult to implement because of the absence of a harbor, the mayor said.

This week, construction materials to be used for paving the roads are expected to be transported to Pag-asa.

27/09/2020

Philippines completes construction of beaching ramp
By New Straits Times
June 10, 2020 @ 11:10am

THE Philippines government has completed the construction of a beaching ramp on Spratly Islands and is set to proceed with runway repairs.

The development bolsters Manila's maritime defence position amid ramped-up efforts by China to assert its expansive territorial claims in the South China Sea.

The Philippine Department of National Defence said it held a formal turnover ceremony on the Manila-controlled Thitu island in the Spratlys on Tuesday.

The Nikkei Asian Review reports that a sheltered port for Philippine fishing vessels was also built.

"We can now proceed with the other projects planned for Pag-asa Island," Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said in a statement, using the local name for Thitu.

He said the completion of the ramp was a necessary first step which will facilitate the transportation of essential construction equipment to the island.

The statement said that the government has allocated 1.3 billion pesos for construction and repair works on the island, including the "concreting of the runway" that has been damaged by erosion.

The government previously said that it began repairs in 2018 but works have been hampered partly by inclement weather.

The works continued even as hundreds of Chinese fishing vessels were also reported to be circling the island on multiple occasions.

The airstrip on Thitu Island was built in the 1970s and was the first runway in the Spratly Islands.

According to US-based think tank Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative, the airstrip is officially 1.3 km long, but the real figure is closer to 1.2 km due to the collapse of the western end, making it difficult for take-offs and landings.

The Philippine Navy last month said it docked a ship on Thitu for the first time.

Thitu is located in the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea, where Beijing has built artificial islands with military outposts. Brunei, Malaysia and Vietnam also have overlapping claims in the area.

Bejing recently bolstered its claims in the South China Sea by establishing two new districts and naming 80 features, triggering diplomatic protests from the Philippines and Vietnam.

Manila, meanwhile, last week suspended the termination of an agreement about visiting forces with the US amid rising tensions in the South China Sea, making it easier for both allies to continue military drills.

25/09/2020