DAMAGED A hole is seen on the hull of the fishing boat, F/B Bubhoy, which was reportedly rammed by a rubber boat of the Chinese Coast Guard on March 5 when Filipino fishermen ventured near disputed Scarborough Shoal in the West Philippine Sea. ALLAN MACATUNO/INQUIRER CENTRAL LUZON
DAMAGED A hole is seen on the hull of the fishing boat, F/B Bubhoy, which was reportedly rammed by a rubber boat of the Chinese Coast Guard on March 5 when Filipino fishermen ventured near disputed Scarborough Shoal in the West Philippine Sea. ALLAN MACATUNO/INQUIRER CENTRAL LUZON

LINGAYEN, Pangasinan—A group of fishermen, who returned home to the fishing village of Cato in Infanta town on Monday, told village officials that they were struck with bottles hurled by Chinese coast guards who had chased them away from the Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal.

Charlito Maniago, Cato village chief, said the fishermen, who were in two boats, were pelted by the crew of a Chinese Coast Guard vessel, after they were warned to stay away from the disputed shoal.

Maniago said he was not informed when the confrontation took place at sea, although it could have been on the same day the fishermen from neighboring Zambales province were shooed away from the shoal on March 5.

“They just told me that they retaliated by throwing stones at the Chinese coast guards,” Maniago told the Inquirer by telephone.

The fisherman sailed with rocks, which they used to weigh down the fishing lines, once they reached Scarborough Shoal, also known as Panatag Shoal and Bajo de Masinloc.

The shoal, which is about 260 kilometers from Infanta, serves as a mid-sea refuge for fishing boats during stormy weather. It used to be a free zone for local fishermen until the Chinese began patrolling the West Philippine Sea.

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