Of all the disinformation thrown Commodore Jay Tarriela’s way, nothing has annoyed him more than this: that he’s a CIA agent. That insidious jab—thrown by a troll on social media soon after the Philippine Coast Guard officer completed his fellowship in Washington, D.C. in 2023—still stings to this day. “For me personally, I think the...
Tag: Philippine Coast Guard
Jubilation, relief, and a little disappointment on the West Philippine Sea
Jubilant, relieved, but a bit disappointed at not coming close to Bajo de Masinloc, also known as Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal. That was how some people felt at the end of last week’s small flotilla of the “Atin Ito” coalition that had for its mission to supply food and fuel to fishermen at Bajo de Masinloc...
Filipino fishers are called upon to sacrifice during PH-US Balikatan
Fishers in San Antonio, Zambales, may have to sacrifice days’ worth of catch as the Coast Guard enforces a three-day “no-sail zone policy” in the municipal waters during next week’s war games between Philippine and US troops, according to security analyst Chester Cabalza. The policy, which bans fishing within the municipal waters on May 6-9,...
How to take back what’s ours
Surely many Filipinos were startled by footage shown on ANC last week of a Chinese Navy helicopter hovering perilously low over Sandy Cay last March 23. On the ground were Filipino marine scientists doing research on biodiversity and inspecting the apparently poor state of the corals at the sandbar about two nautical miles from the...