“Pag-asa Island belongs to us. Hindi ako
papayag kung pati ‘yung Pag-asa i-occupy nila (I will not allow them to occupy
Pag-asa Island). No, of course not.”
This was the warning given by President Rodrigo
Roa Duterte when asked by reporters on the sidelines of his speaking engagement
in Puerto Princesa, Palawan, about the hundreds of Chinese vessels that have
massed and circling the island.
He maintains that Pag-asa island belongs to the
Philippines.
 |
| President Rodrigo Roa Duterte during a campaign rally in Palawan (photo credit to owner) |
A few days back a report was released by the
Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) that hundreds of Chinese Coast guard and
fishng vessels has “swarmed” the Philippine-held Pag-asa Island.
“I will not plead or beg, but I am just telling
you to lay off Pag-asa [Island] because I have soldiers there,” Duterte said.
“If you touch it, that’s another story. Then I
will tell my soldiers ‘prepare for suicide missions.’”
But the President , however made it clear that
he is not going to war with China over territorial disputes, explaining he
would work for a “compromise” instead.
He explained that he was not ready to do war
with the Asian giant, because to do so would be like sending his soldiers to
death.
“We go into a compromise for the time being
[precisely because], if we go to war or there is a violent conflict, we would
never win and I would suffer beyond imagination. I would just go there to send
my soldiers and policemen to be slaughtered. I am not prepared to do that,” the
President said.
“Kung gusto natin (If we want), we have two options — we drive
them away by force, can we do that? Unless we want to commit suicide,” the
President said.
“If you go to war, the first step of China would be to launch
its missile in seven minutes [and] it would arrive in Manila before you can
make a fourth of your journey to where you want to go,” he added.
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Report from Manila Times
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