Details have emerged about the June 17 resupply mission to Ayungin Shoal, where unarmed Philippine Navy (PN) sailors valiantly defended their supplies against armed China Coast Guard (CCG) personnel.
During his visit to the Western Command (Wescom) headquarters in Palawan, Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Chief of Staff General Romeo Brawner Jr. revealed the intense confrontation.
At 5:59 a.m., the mission turned confrontational when CCG RHIBs rammed the PN’s inflatable boats, injuring Seaman First Class Jeffrey Facundo, whose right thumb was severed during the collision. Facundo was later rescued and awarded a wounded personnel medal by General Brawner.
Facundo expressed his unwavering dedication to his duty, saying, “Yes, sir,” when asked by Brawner if he was willing to return to the West Philippine Sea to serve.
The PN’s mission involved six vessels, including two rigid hull inflatable boats (RHIBs) and the civilian vessel ML Lapulapu, to deliver supplies to troops stationed at the BRP Sierra Madre outpost.
CCG forces boarded and looted one of the PN boats, threatening the unarmed sailors with their bladed weapons.
“We retrieved video footages, we saw in the video how the Chinese even threatened our personnel by pointing their knives at our personnel. Despite this, lumaban po ang ating mga sundalo with their bare hands,” General Brawner said.
Rear Admiral Alfonso Torres, Wescom commander, clarified the unarmed status of the PN troops, noting that the firearms were stored to avoid misperceptions of an armed operation.
“One of our guidance when it comes to the conduct of RORE is that, no firearms will be handled or shown by our personnel to the China Coast Guard personnel. We are doing that to avoid misperception that we are conducting an armed operation,” he said.
Despite their efforts, the CCG seized seven Colt automatic rifles, personal cellphones, and other equipment from the PN, causing significant damage.
The CCG also managed to sail close to BRP Sierra Madre and deliberately puncture other boats attached to the World War II-era warship.
General Brawner commended the courage and restraint of the PN and Philippine Coast Guard personnel, emphasizing the mission’s goal of peaceful resupply and avoiding war.
“I really admire Filipino soldiers, sailors, as well as the Philippine Coast Guard because of the restraint that they practiced. Napakalapit po ng pinangyarihan nito sa LS-57 and as we all know, LS-57 is also armed but we did not use those because our objective is that while we want to bring supplies to our troops following international laws, our objective is also to prevent war,” Brawner said.
He condemned the CCG’s actions as piracy saying, “forr me, this is piracy already. Parang mga pirate na sila sa ginawa nilang actions.”
The AFP continues to call for accountability from the Chinese forces involved in the incident.
“We are demanding that the Chinese return our rifles and our equipment. We are also demanding from them to pay for the damages that they have caused. Babayaran po nila iyon dahil hindi po tayo papayag na sisirain nila ang ating mga kagamitan at kunin lang nila,” Brawner stated.
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