Two months ago, I had a Zoom meeting with fisherfolk from Zambales who complained that their fish catch had been dwindling because huge Chinese trawlers have been scooping the fish in their traditional fishing grounds in the West Philippine Sea, leaving them with smaller fish. Filipino fishermen use only wooden boats with outriggers that are dwarfed by the huge steel-hulled Chinese trawlers. Then last July 12, 2021, on the fifth anniversary of the landmark Arbitral Award, the Zambales fisherfolk sent me their statement again, lamenting their loss of income and livelihood because the hundreds of Chinese trawlers roaming in the West Philippine Sea have depleted the fish stock.

Carpio, A. T. (2021, July 26). Our vanishing ‘galunggong’. Panay News, pp. 7, 14.