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TAIPEI- MANILA ROW:
PCG may have violated rules of engagement: report
By Shih Hsiu-chuan / Staff Reporter
Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) personnel involved in a confrontation with a
Taiwanese fishing boat that resulted in the death of a fisherman on May 9 ˇ§might
have violated their rules of engagement,ˇ¨ Philippine newspaper the Manila
Bulletin reported on Friday.
The PCG has admitted to the shooting, but said that its personnel fired on Kuang
Ta Hsing No. 28 as it seemed intent on ramming the Philippine vessel MCS-3001,
which was jointly manned by the coast guard and personnel from the Bureau of
Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR).
Citing an unnamed source at the Philippine Bureau of National Investigation (NBI),
which is expected to submit the first part of an investigation this week, the
Manila Bulletin said the NBI has found the ˇ§use of excessive gunfireˇ¨ by PCG
personnel ˇ§unusualˇ¨ if they indeed were just acting in self-defense during their
operation against the fishing boat.
An NBI insider, who refused to be named because he was not authorized to speak
on the matter, said that a PCG report of the incident has shown signs that ˇ§some
particular provisions of the PCGˇ¦s rules of engagement have been violated,ˇ¨
according to the newspaper.
The report said that Taiwanese fishermen refused to stop, despite local maritime
authorities firing warning shots and blaring a horn at Taiwanese fishing boats.
One of the boats maneuvered backward before speeding forward and almost
colliding with the stern of the Philippine ship, the PCG report claimed.
Under the PCGˇ¦s rules of engagement, personnel cannot fire warning shots to
prevent a vessel from escaping or force a vessel to comply with instructions to
stop and be boarded, the NBI source was quoted as saying.
Coast guard personnel should employ other means to force a target vessel to
comply with their instructions, the Manila Bulletin quoted the source as saying.
ˇ§Warning shots are only fired prior to the direct firing at the hostile
vessel/craft or its crew member,ˇ¨ the source added.
In this case, the NBI source noted many instances of PCG personnel firing
warning shots during chases to try to apprehend Taiwanese fishing vessels, the
newspaper said.
ˇ§Given that they acted in self-defense, is it justifiable to fire their weapons
right away? What does the rules of engagement of PCG say?ˇ¨ the source asked.
Meanwhile, the Philippine Star newspaper reported that the NBI based its initial
findings on the incident report submitted by the PCG, and on interviews with
personnel on board the Philippine vessel, as well as ballistics testing of
firearms used.
In accordance with PCG rules of engagement, warning shots are fired only under
extreme circumstances or when an intruding vessel clearly shows hostility, the
Philippine Star cited an unnamed source at the NBI as reporting yesterday.
Separately, NBI Deputy Director Virgilio Mendez reportedly told local media in
Manila on Friday that investigators are speeding up their work because of the
strong reaction in the aftermath of the incident.
Philippine Justice Secretary Leila de Lima said on Friday that the NBI is set to
wrap up the first part of its investigation after investigators have quizzed PCG
personnel and that it plans to conduct the second phase of its investigation in
Taiwan.
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