Thread by @olliekarp

In today's #dailysoup, I'll introduce a disputed series of small rocks in the South China Sea, the Scarborough Shoal.

Forming a triangular shape, it is known to be a hotspot for SCS disputes between China and the #Philippines.

1/18

The Scarborough Shoal, known as "Huangyan Dao" in Chinese and "Bajo de Masinloc" in Filipino, is located in the Philippines' EEZ or the West Philippine Sea.

It is also located 340km W of Manila, 575km E of the Paracel Islands, and 523km N of the Spratly Islands.

2/18

Loads of oil and natural gas, polymetallic nodules and different kinds of sea creatures (e.g. lobster, jack, mackerel, etc.) are present in the Scarborough Shoal.

The shoal is also a major fishing ground for fisherfolk...

3/18

...from the Philippine provinces of Zambales, Pangasinan, and Bataan, as their livelihoods depend on travelling to the shoal with motorised outriggers to harvest the fish there, especially during fishing season.

However, they are facing a big threat, which is from #China.

4/18

Besides so-called "historical claims" (which I'll expound in a future entry to avoid too much information), China has been in an ongoing dispute with the Philippines in the Scarborough Shoal over the dominance of natural resources x trade routes of the SCS.

5/18

After the CCP party ignored Filipino activity in the Scarborough Shoal from the 1950s to the 1970s, the CCP made a survey of the shoal in 1978, and named it as "Huangyan Islands".

1997 was the year of the first major grey-zone episode between the Philippines and China...

6/18

...in the Scarborough Shoal, in which a China-sponsored radio team "told Philippine Navy ships to go away", claiming that "it's Chinese territory.

Then, Philippine navy ships arrested 21 Chinese fishermen, while China did the "Philippines-did-it-first" peepotalking tactic.

7/18

Then, in April 10, 2012, Chinese fishing boats were hogging maritime resources in the Scarborough Shoal, prompting the BRP Gregorio del Pilar to try arresting eight Chinese fishing boats, but they were blocked by two Chinese surveillance vessels.



8/18

After a typhoon in July 2012 forced Filipino and Chinese vessels to leave the Scarborough Shoal, two Chinese civilian ships remained while Chinese forces erected a barrier, hoping to close off the shoal.

9/18

While my country was trying to diplomatically settle the issue, pro-China stints were occurring.

For example, the ASEAN almost expressed a communique expressing concern on the SCS issue, but Hun Sen prevented them from doing so.

Read more here:

10/18

After the standoff, the term "West Philippine Sea" was coined to reiterate PH's claims in the SCS.

However, Chinese forces continued to linger in the Scarborough Shoal, engaging in grey-zone acts like shooting water cannons at Filipino boats in the shoal in 2014 and 2015.

11/18

Meanwhile, China tried to justify its claims over Scarborough Shoal by describing the shoal as an "island", aligning with their "Huangyan Islands" claim.

However, the UNCLOS stated that the Scarborough Shoal is not an island but a group of rocks sticking out in the sea.

12/18

Then, UNCLOS' definition of the Scarborough Shoal as a "group of rocks" paved the way to the Philippines' victory over China in the 2016 arbitral tribunal on the SCS.

However, China continued to insist its claims over the Scarborough Shoal, calling it an "island".

13/18

For example, during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, 200+ Chinese fishing vessels illegally poached 240K kilograms of fish in the WPS, especially in the Scarborough Shoal, prompting DFA Secretary Teodoro Locsin to file diplomatic protests.

14/18

After the recent "green laser incident" in the SCS, fisherfolk from Zambales expressed concerns that they are being harassed by loitering Chinese fishing vessels hogging fish in the Scarborough Shoal, feeling a sense of worry that "Chinese vessels may attack them anytime".

15/18

Then, as of today, multiple Chinese fishing vessels continue to loiter in the SW portion of the Scarborough Shoal, while Chinese Coast Guard ships continue to loiter in the shoal, mostly at its western x southern portions.

16/18

Coz of the Scarborough Shoal's location between the Paracel and Spratly Islands, a Chinese victory over the shoal would enable Chinese forces easier access to both of the islands, thus making it easier for them to perform surveillance activities in SCS routes. Hence,...

17/18

...the Scarborough Shoal is very important for my country to defend, especially when it is a part of the "Asian Mediterranean" while my country's fishing economy can be impacted by the current status of the Scarborough Shoal dispute.

18/18

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Related entries:
Entry #60 (South China Sea dispute) -

Entry #25 (Hun Sen) -

This is Entry #62 of the #dailysoup. For previous entries, kindly visit this link: bit.ly/thedailysoup

Shoutout(s): @supbrow, @GordianKnotRay