Amid what appears to be a deliberate campaign by Beijing to distort the truth about what’s really happening in our Exclusive Economic Zone in the South China Sea, Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro has correctly warned Filipinos not to believe any ‘‘Chinese propaganda’’ on the issue.
The Defense Secretary urged the public to be very wary of attempts by Beijing’s spokespersons and their Filipino trolls to steer the conversation away from the main threat posed by China’s harassment of Philippine vessels and other illegal activities in the disputed waters.
The defense official pointed out that Chinese propaganda has been highlighting Manila’s supposed violation of a “gentleman’s agreement” between then President Rodrigo Duterte and Chinese President Xi Jinping to maintain the status quo in Ayungin Shoal where the Philippines has stationed Filipino troops at BRP Sierra Madre, a grounded World War II-era warship that serves as Manila’s military outpost in the area.
The Secretary is on the right track in asking Filipinos “not to fall for the trap by Chinese propaganda of refocusing the debate on a so-called promise while deflecting attention away from China’s aggressive maneuvers, thereby freeing and allowing them to continue with their illegal activities in our EEZ.”
He is not the only high government official to speak on the heightened tensions in the West Philippine Sea.
National Security Adviser Eduardo Año said he and his American counterpart Jake Sullivan recently discussed China’s “coercive, aggressive and deceptive actions” in the West Philippine Sea.
According to Año, Sullivan reaffirmed Washington’s ironclad commitment to their alliance, and expressed the US government’s support for Manila following China’s dangerous actions obstructing a lawful Philippine resupply mission to Ayungin.
The American official was referring to the March 23 water cannon attack by Chinese ships on a Philippine resupply boat heading to BRP Sierra Madre, leaving three Philippine Navy crew members injured.
Meanwhile, Commodore Jay Tarriela, PCG’s spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea, echoed the call of Defense Secretary Teodoro for Filipinos to unite against China’s illegal actions in the West Philippine Sea.
He warned that China’s efforts to “spread disinformation and create division are strong, so we must double our efforts to counter their lies.”
He also asked Filipinos to educate fellow countrymen “who may have been misinformed and have accepted China’s false narratives” with “courtesy and professionalism.”
We totally agree with the Coast Guard official’s view that “our fight in the West Philippine Sea is not dictated by any external actor but driven by our national interest.”