Chinese vessels continue to swarm Philippine waters in the disputed South China Sea despite the Philippines having filed over 100 protests against China’s sea incursions this year, according to officials.
A total of 172 protests were filed against China’s illegal presence, illegal fishing, harassment of local fishermen, and unauthorized marine scientific research as of Aug. 31, Foreign Affairs Assistant Secretary Maria Angela Ponce told the senate committee on foreign affairs on Sept. 8.
Of those, 48 protests were filed under President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who took office on June 30. His predecessor, Rodrigo Duterte, filed 388 diplomatic protests against China over his six-year term as president….