A FILIPINO fishing boat, FBCA Prince Elmo 2, was rammed by an unidentified vessel in the West Philippine Sea (WPS), leaving three fishermen missing, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) reported on Wednesday.
The incident occurred on January 30th, but the PCG was only notified on February 16th. The unidentified vessel rammed the fishing boat, which had eight fishermen onboard, at an unknown location. Five fishermen were rescued by the MV DONG AN in waters off Vietnam on February 16th and transferred to BRP Boracay on Wednesday morning before being turned over to authorities in Naic.
The PCG deployed BRP Boracay with a medical team to retrieve the rescued fishermen. Despite a search by MV DONG AN, the three remaining fishermen remain missing.
Senator Francis Tolentino, chair of the Senate Special Committee on Maritime and Admiralty Zones, condemned the incident and called for a thorough investigation to find the responsible party and the missing fishermen.
He highlighted the recurring nature of such incidents, citing previous similar events involving foreign vessels, including one in Subic, Zambales in July 2024 and another at Panatag Shoal in October 2023. He emphasized the importance of the Archipelagic Sea Lanes Law (Republic Act 12065) in preventing such occurrences.
This incident echoes the 2019 ramming of the Gem-Ver fishing boat by a Chinese vessel at Recto Bank, where 22 Filipino fishermen were abandoned at sea before being rescued by a Vietnamese vessel. The Chinese ship owner later apologized, while then-President Rodrigo Duterte characterized the incident as a “maritime incident.”
