28 April 2015

News Story: Zambales (Philippines) taps Canadian firm vs intrusion in disputed seas


Allan Macatuno

SUBIC, Zambales—The province that is staring Chinese aggression in the face has secured help from a Canadian surveillance firm to keep track of the intrusion of foreign vessels and other marine activities in the West Philippine Sea.

Backed by a March 23 provincial board resolution, the Zambales government has commissioned Xanatos Marine Ltd. to put up a system that would monitor in real time all vessels which enter the province’s territorial waters, Gov. Hermogenes Ebdane Jr. said on Thursday.

Using the surveillance system, Zambales can “prevent foreign fishermen from illegally entering our territorial waters,” he said. “We will show them that they can’t just bully us,” he said.

Xanatos’ Provincial Coast Watch System was initially offered to Zambales as an initiative to protect the coastal waters of Zambales from waste dumping into the sea, Ebdane said.

“We’ve been receiving reports that there are many foreign vessels that dump human waste into our territorial waters. That’s the reason we are seeking the help of this Canadian company,” he said.

Read the full story at The Inquirer