PH won’t leave Ayungin Shoal

THE Philippine government will never abandon BRP Sierra Madre because it is a symbol of its sovereignty in that area of the West Philippine Sea, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said. BRP Sierra Madre, an outpost of the Philippine Marines, is positioned in Ayungin (Second Thomas) Shoal, which is within the 200-nauticalmile exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of the Philippines.

"Ayungin Shoal has only a distance of 115 nautical miles from Palawan. This means that we have sovereign rights and jurisdiction over these waters," Commo. Jay Tarriela, PCG spokesman for the West Philippine Sea, said in an interview on Tuesday, August 8.

Tarriela was reacting to a demand made by the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs that the Philippines remove BRP Sierra Madre from Ayungin Shoal.

Manila intentionally ran it aground in 1999 to assert Philippine sovereignty in the area.

China said the Philippines promised several times to "tow it away but has yet to act."

"As far as I am concerned, I cannot recall that our national government