Why the Philippines captured Chinese fishermen

Forth is to declare illegal rights on the Half Moon Shoal. The Half Moon Shoal is China's inherent territory, and there is no dispute in the area. The true purpose for the Philippines in provoking the dispute is to seize its rich fishing resources, good anchorages and harbors.

Fifth is to tarnish the image of Chinese fishermen. Chinese fishermen have been working in the South China Sea for many years. In order to tarnish their image, the Philippines has charged them for allegedly poaching sea turtles and damaging coral. Actually, it is fishermen from the Philippines that poison and kill fish, and damage coral reef ecosystems near the South China Sea.

Six is to internationalize the South China Sea issue. In order to involve more countries in the dispute area, the Philippines has tried hard to bring in neighboring countries as well as other related powers out of the area.

Seven is to disturb a Code of Conduct (COC) in the South China Sea. China and the ASEAN countries have already reached a consensus to speed up a COC in the South China Sea. The Philippines aims to set up its own rules in the dispute area, excluding others.

Eight is to satisfy the needs of Filipino fishermen. After the Huangyan Island confrontation in 2012, the Filipino fishermen are eager to "return" to the Nansha waters. To meet their demand, the Philippines government has helped them to set up a so-called association and protect their fishing in the area.

Last but not least, the event was for political ends. Recently, the Philippines government has suffered from a weak domestic economy, corruption and the risk of falling support. To deal with that, they have planned to provoke extreme nationalism in the country, and the so-called "China threat" is undoubtedly the best excuse.

The author is a researcher on territorial waters from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

This article was first published in Chinese and was translated by Lin Liyao.