HEADLINES: 2 PH ships protect fishers as China guards 'trespassers' | June 16, 2024

HEADLINES: 2 PH ships protect fishers as China guards 'trespassers' | June 16, 2024

Good day. Here are the stories for The Manila Times for Sunday, June 16, 2024.

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READ: 2 PH ships protect fishers as China guards 'trespassers'

AS China's "no trespassing" regulation took effect on Saturday in most parts of the South China Sea (SCS), including those within the Philippines' exclusive economic zone (EEZ), the country's coast guard immediately deployed two of its ships in a show of determination to protect its fishermen. The Philippines' move comes as G7 leaders called out China for its "increasing use" of dangerous maneuvers and water cannons against Filipino vessels, reiterating its opposition to Chinese "intimidation activities" in the South China Sea. In a communiqué following the G7 Summit in Apulia, Italy, the leaders of the powerful economic grouping raised concerns about the situation in the East and South China Seas, reiterating their "strong opposition to any unilateral attempt to change the status quo by force or coercion." Hours before the implementation of the new detention policy, Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) vessel BRP Malapascua arrived 45 kilometers east-southeast of Bajo de Masinloc (Scarborough Shoal), according to retired United States Air Force Col. Ray Powell, director of SeaLight, a maritime transparency project that monitors and reports activities in the SCS. The presence of the Malapascua signaled Manila's determination to protect its people fishing in the West Philippine Sea (WPS), a part of SCS recognized by an arbitral ruling in 2016 as within the country's EEZ. Upon its arrival, Powell said the Malapascua was met by at least two China Coast Guard (CCG) ships. He said the Malapascua was followed by its sister ship, the BRP Sindangan, which arrived east of Scarborough Shoal.

READ: Philippines files formal claim on extended WPS shelf to UN

THE Philippines formally asked the United Nations to register its extended continental shelf (ECS) in the Western Palawan region in the West Philippine Sea, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) announced on Saturday. The submission of information at the UN Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) was made through the Philippine Mission to the UN in New York on June 14 (New York time). This is the second time the Philippines has registered an ECS entitlement. In 2012, the CLCS validated its partial submission on the Philippine Rise, resulting in an additional 135,506 square kilometers of seabed area for the country. In a statement, DFA Assistant Secretary for Maritime and Ocean Affairs Marshall Louis Alferez said this submission was a declaration not only of the Philippines' maritime entitlements under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (Unclos) but also of Manila's commitment to the responsible application of its processes. This would also help secure the Philippines' sovereign rights and maritime jurisdictions in the West Philippine Sea, Alferez said, noting that the 2016 arbitral ruling confirmed the country's maritime entitlements and rejected those that exceeded geographic and substantive limits under Unclos.

READ: 21 of 22 Pinoy seafarers in Houthi-hit ship rescued

THE Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) on Saturday said that 21 of the 22 Filipino seafarers aboard a ship that was attacked by Houthi rebels had been rescued. During the Saturday News Forum in Quezon City, DMW Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac said the rescue operation on the MV Tutor was launched by international forces between 10:30 p.m. and 11 p.m. on June 13, as it was adrift in the southern portion of the Red Sea.

READ: Dengue cases up in 7 regions

The Department of Health (DoH) said on Saturday that seven regions in the country registered an increase in the number of dengue cases. preted with caution. Domingo added that the decline in the number of infections was starting to plateau, which could mean an increase in the number of cases could follow. The DoH said the following regions posted a jump in dengue infections over the past three to four weeks: Cordillera, Ilocos, Zamboanga Peninsula, Cagayan Valley, Caraga, Mimaropa (Mindoro, Marinduque, Romblon and Palawan), and Northern Mindanao.

READ: Guo to face 'serious' criminal raps

SUSPENDED Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo would face "serious" and "non-bailable" criminal charges over her alleged involvement in the illegal Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGOs) in her municipality. At a news forum in Quezon City on Saturday, Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (Paocc) spokesman Winston John Casio said that an interagency body would convene next week "to finally decide on the charges to be filed against the incorporators, beneficial owners of Zun Yuan, the Bamban operation."

BUSINESS: Economic exec pushes for right-of-way law

SPECIAL Assistant to the President for Investment and Economic Affairs Secretary Frederick Go emphasized the urgent need for a right-of-way law to fast-track critical infrastructure projects in the country. The Marcos administration's economic czar told reporters on the sidelines of an industry awards night in Taguig City on Thursday that creating and passing an efficient right-of-way law is part of his wish list for the 19th Congress once it starts the next session in the second half of the year.

SPORTS: Bolts gun for 1st-ever title

SENSING the finish line, Meralco will be shooting for no less than the franchise's first-ever league title as the Bolts clash with the embattled San Miguel Beermen (SMB) in Game 6 of their PBA Philippine Cup Finals series on Sunday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. The Bolts took a pivotal 3-2 series lead on Friday after subduing the Beermen, 92-88. Now moving into the cusp of a league championship for the first time since joining the PBA in the 2010-2011, Meralco gets the first of its two chances to win the title outright.

READ: Opinion and editorial

Marlen Ronquillo is today's front page columnist, as he describes "magical prosperity".

Today's editorial calls on senators to do their duty on the Absolute Divorce Bill. Read the full version in the paper's opinion section or listen to the Voice of the Times.

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