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VOL. XXXVII • NO. 223• 3 SECTIONS 12 PAGES • P20 • MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2023 • www.manilastandard.net • mst.daydesk@gmail.com
China walls in Scarborough Sets 300-m floating barrier to keep Filipino fishermen out of shoal By Vince Lopez, Macon Ramos-Araneta and Rio N. Araja
HILIPPINE officials and lawmakers on Sunday denounced China’s installation of a floating barrier in the southeast portion of Bajo de Masinloc (Scarborough) Shoal, which prevents Filipino fishermen from entering the area to catch fish.
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The floating barrier, with an estimated length of 300 meters, was discovered by personnel of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) and the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) onboard the BRP Datu Bankaw, which conducted a maritime patrol mission on Fri-
300-METER ILLEGAL BARRIER.
The Philippine Coast Guard and the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources confirm the presence of a 300-meter floating barrier installed by the Chinese Coast Guard along Bajo de Masinloc. Inset photo shows a wooden boat, with Filipino fisherman Arnel Satam on board, dwarfed by a Chinese Coast Guard vessel after he was intercepted for attempting to enter Scarborough Shoal. AFP, PCG
day, Sept. 22 in the vicinity of the shoal. Three Chinese Coast Guard boats and a Chinese maritime militia service boat installed the floating barrier upon the arrival of the BFAR vessel, the PCG said in a statement. Filipino fishermen note that the CCG
usually installs floating barriers whenever they monitor a large number of them in the area. BFAR found more than 50 Filipino fishing boats in the area during its routine patrol. The PCG said BFAR provided these fishermen with various Next page
China coast guard chases Pinoy fisherman in disputed waters SOUTH CHINA SEA—Filipino fisherman Arnel Satam guns the motor of his tiny wooden boat as he makes a dash for the shallow waters of Scarborough Shoal in the disputed South China Sea, with Chinese coast guard speed boats in hot pursuit. In a high-seas chase lasting several minutes, Satam tries in vain to outrun the
faster boats in the hope of slipping inside the ring of reefs controlled by China, where fish are more abundant. Friday's pursuit was witnessed by AFP journalists on board the Philippine Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources ship BRP Datu Bankaw, which was delivering food, water and fuel to Filipino Next page
Manila to UN: Marcos: Give sari-sari store owners ayuda amid rice price cap Keep SCS on rules regime By Vince Lopez and Julito Rada
By Rey E. Requejo THE Philippines made a plea before the United Nations General Assembly Saturday for the preservation of a rulesbased global order as it called for an amicable resolution of disputes in the South China Sea. Speaking before the 78th session of the UN General Assembly on Saturday (early Sunday, Manila time), Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manila said the “preservation of a rules-based global order is our collective responsibility.” ''Its present and future rest on the predictability and stability of international law, which safeguards the rights
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COMELEC: 66 BSKE CANDIDATES FACE DISQUALIFICATION NEWS/ A4
‘RESTORE P6.15-B BUDGET CUT OF STATE COLLEGES’ NEWS/ A3
PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has ordered the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) to also distribute cash assistance to sari-sari store owners affected by the price ceiling on rice, the Palace said Sunday.
Romualdez: Gov’t service caravan to reach all provinces By Rio N. Araja and Vince Lopez ALL provinces will be reached by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s Bagong Pilipinas Serbisyo Fair (BPSF)—the country’s biggest service caravan—to serve millions of Filipino-beneficiaries after the resounding success of its launch held simultaneously in four provinces on Saturday. Speaker Martin Romualdez, one of the principal organizers of the caravan that aims to bring more than 60 government services closer to the people, said the BPSF will visit all 82 provinces. “The government under the Marcos Jr. administration is just here – very, very active and very much present. That is what the Bagong Pilipinas Serbisyo Fair is telling us,” he said. “The Serbisyo Fair truly breathed life into the aspirations of the President to bring so many government programs within the reach of people who may not Next page
The DSWD would work with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) to identify the beneficiaries, and would distribute the cash assistance from Sept. 25 to 29, it added. Marcos had also directed the DSWD to provide cash assistance to small rice retailers affected by the mandated price ceiling on regular and well-milled rice. The President approved the price caps
of P41 a kilo of regular milled rice and P45 for well-milled rice. Based on its latest report, the DSWD said that it has released P92.415 million in financial assistance to 6,161 out of the 8,390-target micro and small rice retailers affected by the implementation of the EO 39. Meanwhile, Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno said he does not expect the
proposed lowering of the import tariffs on imported rice to significantly affect the government’s revenue collections. “It’s actually not that big… Our collection from rice imports is around P17 billion,” Diokno said, referring to the latest Bureau of Customs data showing that rice imports tariff collection stood at P16.81 billion from January to Aug. 26, Next page
3 senators push for gradual POGO phaseout By Macon Ramos-Araneta and Julito G. Rada THREE senators who signed the committee report seeking a total ban on Philippine Overseas Gaming Operators (POGOs) said they will withdraw their
signatures if the phaseout is abrupt. Senators Ronald dela Rosa, JV Ejercito and Raffy Tulfo said the stop to POGO operations should be gradual, citing its negative impact on government revenues and employment. They asserted the outright ban should apply only to illegal POGOs while legal-
ly operating POGOs should be afforded sufficient time for the phaseout. Dela Rosa said one to two years should be enough, while Ejercito said the phaseout should be carried out over two to three years, giving them enough time to adjust since they invested in their operations here. Next page
DONE WITH THE HARD PART.
An aspiring lawyer (center, holding a rose) takes a selfie with her family and loved ones after finishing the last day of the grueling Bar examinations on Sunday, September 24, 2023, at the University of Sto. Tomas in Sampaloc, Manila. Norman Cruz
EXAMINERS, NOT AI, TO CHECK BAR EXAMS, SAYS SC NEWS / A4