PH Coast Guard: China’s Flag-Raising at Bajo de Masinloc Rejected

The Philippine Coast Guard rejected a China Coast Guard flag-raising ceremony held near Bajo de Masinloc, asserting that the October 1 event fails to alter the legal reality of the contested maritime feature.

Bajo de Masinloc Flag-Raising Ceremony Rejected

The China Coast Guard staged the flag-raising event on Thursday, October 1, for its National Day celebrations. According to the Chinese Embassy in Manila, the activity was designed to keep watch over Beijing’s maritime sovereignty.

Rear Admiral Jay Tarriela, the Philippine Coast Guard spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea, condemned the display in an official statement as a misleading portrayal of facts. He maintained that Bajo de Masinloc, also referred to as Scarborough Shoal, remains an integral part of Philippine territory. The site sits 124 nautical miles west of mainland Zambales, firmly inside the Philippines’ 200-nautical-mile exclusive economic zone.

During the operation, Tarriela noted that a Chinese warship challenged a Philippine Coast Guard Piper Navajo aircraft via radio. The flight crew responded that they were conducting a legal maritime patrol inside Philippine zones in accordance with international law. Tarriela stated that the Philippine Coast Guard monitored the area to support an ongoing Kadiwa ng Bagong Bayaning Mangingisda initiative led by the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, during which 35 Filipino fishermen received diesel fuel and food supplies while three China Coast Guard vessels, three Chinese maritime militia vessels, and one People’s Liberation Army Navy warship were present.

Philippine Laws and Arbitral Ruling Define Bajo De Masinloc

Bajo de Masinloc has persisted as a flashpoint since a tense 2012 standoff between Philippine and Chinese vessels. Under the Philippine Maritime Zones Act and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, the shoal generates a 12-nautical-mile territorial sea and a 24-nautical-mile contiguous zone.

The ruling also declared that China’s claims in the South China Sea are without legal basis, a decision that China continues to refuse to recognize.

Security and international relations expert Prof. Renato de Castro explained that the National Day ceremony represents a deliberate symbolic maneuver by Beijing. Symbolism ’yan eh. Parang sinasabi nila kanila ’yan. Kumbaga, talagang kino-commit nila ’yung kanilang service, and of course, buhay para ipagtanggol ’yan, De Castro stated to reporters in a phone interview, noting that similar rituals occur at James Shoal near Sarawak, Malaysia, which he described as the very end of what they call the ten-dash line, situated about 50 nautical miles from Sarawak, where they assert that up to that point it is truly theirs and they will defend it.

De Castro emphasized that Manila faces limited capacity to physically evict Chinese ships from the vicinity. Consequently, he argued that the Philippines must sustain challenges against Beijing’s moves and enhance its defense capabilities. In July 2026, the Philippines deposited its official nautical chart of Bajo de Masinloc with the United Nations to secure its official maritime data on the international record.

Simultaneous Friction Over Batanes Waters

Tarriela stated that the vessel lacked permits or consent to conduct marine scientific research within the Philippine exclusive economic zone, citing Article 56 and Article 246 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, which require the Philippines’ consent as the coastal state.

In response, the Chinese Embassy asserted that the vessel operated under Beijing’s sovereign rights and jurisdiction. Deputy Spokesperson Guo Wei urged the Philippines to respect China’s navigation and scientific research activities, describing them as normal operations under UNCLOS. Tarriela pushed back against the embassy’s claims, asking, Ambassador Jing Quan, anong kachinongalingan (kasinungalingan) na naman ito? He added, Walang permit. Walang consent. Walang jurisdiction ang China dito, noting that Batanes sits outside the nine-dash line and asking whether they now want to expand it all the way to the Luzon Strait, while also pointing out that a normal ship does not spoof its AIS position, loiter over a submarine cable corridor, or fail to respond to a radio challenge, unlike what the JIA HAI KE 7 did.