BONGAO, TAWI-TAWI (MindaNews / 30 July) – Residents of this southernmost capital town are accustomed to the sights of oil tankers and cargo ships traversing the Bongao-Sibutu Channel on a daily basis. However, on July 22, there was a buzz over an unfamiliar sight that landed on social media. As nurse-in-charge Christine Tawasil-Sangkula puts it, they were surprised by the crowd of onlookers and passers-by stuck at the Sanga-Sanga bridge. Was it a starship from a sci-fi movie? A floating mosque? A floating oil rig? A mirage of sorts? Something magical?
While it initially appeared to be a stationary oil rig, it was soon observed moving southwards. It turned out to be the Liberian-flagged SSV Catarina, a vessel transporting a massive floating oil rig structure from Vietnam to Indonesia. In May of this year, locals also reported sightings of Chinese military vessels moving northwestward through the same channel.
Familiar sights of oil tankers and cargo ships are punctuated by oil rigs and military vessels. Euphraim Jayson Diciano, Bongao Coastguard Station commander, estimates that more than fifteen thousand ships pass through the Sibutu Passage[1]. Yet, the provincial government and the local governments of Sibutu and Bongao have no role in or benefit from these activities. Locals are worried about the ship movements because sea mishaps could result in oil spills, health risks over chemicals and other pollutants , and negative environmental impact on the fragile marine ecology and the sea-based livelihood and culture of the province. Additionally, this sea lane is a fishing ground for local fisherfolk, who must remain constantly vigilant, especially at night.
There is a prevailing belief that Tawi-Tawians should receive some form of benefits from these shipping lanes, as they are part of their traditional fishing grounds and fall within the legal boundaries stipulated in both the Local Government Code (LGC) or Republic Act 7160 and the Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL) or Republic Act 11054. The LGC specifies a 15-kilometer radius for municipal waters, while the BOL extends this to a 19-kilometer radius. The municipal waters of Sibutu, Bongao, and Simunul overlap.
The interest to benefit from the sea lane traffic is manifested in legislative proposals. In 1988, then-Congressman Bandon filed House Resolution 19300 calling for the regulation and development of the Sibutu Passage as an international sea lane[2]. The Southern Philippines Development Authority (SPDA) in 2020 explored with the Provincial Government of Tawi-Tawi and the Municipal Government of Sibutu the viability of a Sibutu Transshipment Port Project[3]. Member of Parliament (MP) Abdulla Ahang filed
BTA resolution 429 in 2021 for a transshipment port in Sibutu for the purposes of levying taxes and as an income generating strategy for the BARMM[4].
(MindaViews is the opinion section of MindaNews. Noor Saada is a Tausug of mixed ancestry—born in Jolo, Sulu, grew up in Tawi-Tawi, studied in Zamboanga and worked in Davao, Makati and Cotabato. He is a development worker and peace advocate, former Assistant Regional Secretary of the Department of Education in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, currently working as an independent consultant and is a member of an insider-mediation group that aims to promote intra-Moro dialogue.)
[1] https://mb.com.ph/2018/08/10/troops-occupy-island-used-as-jump-off-point-by-asg/?amp
[2] https://issuances-library.senate.gov.ph/bills/house-bill-no-19300-8th-congress-republic
[3] https://spda.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/SPDA_FY2020_Annual_Report_May262021.pdf
[4] https://parliament.bangsamoro.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/PR429.pdf
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