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Philippines Says China's South China Sea Moves 'Aggressive, Unprofessional and Illegal'

FILE - In this photo provided by the Philippine Coast Guard, a Chinese Coast Guard ship, right, uses its water cannons on a Philippine Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) vessel, as it approaches Scarborough Shoal in the disputed South China Sea, on Dec. 9, 2023. (Philippine Coast Guard via AP, File)
FILE - In this photo provided by the Philippine Coast Guard, a Chinese Coast Guard ship, right, uses its water cannons on a Philippine Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) vessel, as it approaches Scarborough Shoal in the disputed South China Sea, on Dec. 9, 2023. (Philippine Coast Guard via AP, File)
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Philippines Says China's South China Sea Moves 'Aggressive, Unprofessional and Illegal'

FILE - In this photo provided by the Philippine Coast Guard, a Chinese Coast Guard ship, right, uses its water cannons on a Philippine Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) vessel, as it approaches Scarborough Shoal in the disputed South China Sea, on Dec. 9, 2023. (Philippine Coast Guard via AP, File)
FILE - In this photo provided by the Philippine Coast Guard, a Chinese Coast Guard ship, right, uses its water cannons on a Philippine Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) vessel, as it approaches Scarborough Shoal in the disputed South China Sea, on Dec. 9, 2023. (Philippine Coast Guard via AP, File)

The Philippine government slammed China on Monday for "repeated aggressive, unprofessional and illegal" actions in the South China Sea after a string of clashes and incidents on air and at sea over the past week.
The Philippines' national maritime council said Chinese aircraft made unsafe maneuvers against a civilian aircraft conducting patrols over the Scarborough shoal and Subi reef, Reuters said.
On Sunday, Chinese vessels also "blocked, rammed and fired water cannons" against a government fisheries vessel while doing a resupply mission to Filipino fishermen in Sabina shoal, it said.
These actions are "alarming", the maritime council said in a statement.
"It calls into question China’s supposed commitment to de-escalate the situation in the area and create a conducive environment for dialogue and consultation," the council said.
The Philippines added it will continue to pursue diplomacy in managing maritime issues, and urged China "to return to the path of constructive dialogue" on South China Sea matters.
Philippine Defense Minister Gilberto Teodoro separately said on Monday that China's actions were "patently illegal" following the clash near Sabina shoal
"We have to expect these kinds of behavior from China because this is a struggle. We have to be ready to anticipate and to get used to these kinds of acts of China which are patently illegal as we have repeatedly said," Teodoro told reporters.
In the incident at Sabina shoal, Manila's South China Sea task force accused Chinese vessels of ramming and using water cannons against a Philippine fisheries vessel transporting food, fuel and medicine for Filipino fishermen.
The Chinese coast guard said the Philippine vessel "ignored repeated serious warnings and deliberately approached and rammed" China's law enforcement boat, resulting in a collision.
Asked if the latest incident would trigger treaty obligations between the United States and the Philippines, Teodoro said: "That is putting the cart before the horse. Let us deter an armed attack, that is the more important thing."
The Philippines and the United States have a mutual defense treaty and Washington has vowed to aid the Philippines against armed attacks on its vessels and soldiers in the South China Sea.
The Chinese embassy in Manila did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Monday is a public holiday in the Philippines.
China claims sovereignty over nearly all of the South China Sea, including areas claimed by the Philippines, Taiwan, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam and Brunei.
An international arbitral tribunal in 2016 ruled that China's claim had no basis under international law, a decision Beijing has rejected.

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Rohingya Refugees Mark Anniversary of Their Exodus, Demand Safe Return to Myanmar 

Rohingya refugees shout slogans as they gather to mark the seventh anniversary of their fleeing from neighboring Myanmar to escape a military crackdown in 2017, during heavy monsoon rains in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh, August 25, 2024. (Reuters)
Rohingya refugees shout slogans as they gather to mark the seventh anniversary of their fleeing from neighboring Myanmar to escape a military crackdown in 2017, during heavy monsoon rains in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh, August 25, 2024. (Reuters)
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Rohingya Refugees Mark Anniversary of Their Exodus, Demand Safe Return to Myanmar 

Rohingya refugees shout slogans as they gather to mark the seventh anniversary of their fleeing from neighboring Myanmar to escape a military crackdown in 2017, during heavy monsoon rains in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh, August 25, 2024. (Reuters)
Rohingya refugees shout slogans as they gather to mark the seventh anniversary of their fleeing from neighboring Myanmar to escape a military crackdown in 2017, during heavy monsoon rains in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh, August 25, 2024. (Reuters)

Tens of thousands of Rohingya refugees from Myanmar who live in sprawling camps in Bangladesh on Sunday marked the seventh anniversary of their mass exodus, demanding safe return to Myanmar's Rakhine state.

The refugees gathered in an open field at Kutupalong camp in Cox’s Bazar district carrying banners and festoons reading “Hope is Home” and “We Rohingya are the citizens of Myanmar,” defying the rain on a day that is marked as “Rohingya Genocide Day.”

On Aug. 25, 2017, hundreds of thousands of refugees started crossing the border to Bangladesh on foot and by boats amid indiscriminate killings and other violence in Myanmar’s Rakhine state.

Myanmar had launched a brutal crackdown following attacks by an insurgent group on guard posts. The scale, organization and ferocity of the operation led to accusations from the international community, including the UN, of ethnic cleansing and genocide.

Then-Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina ordered border guards to open the border, eventually allowing more than 700,000 refugees to take shelter in the Muslim-majority nation. The influx was in addition to the more than 300,000 refugees who had already been living in Bangladesh for decades in the wake of waves of previous violence perpetrated by Myanmar’s military.

Since 2017, Bangladesh has attempted at least twice to send the refugees back and has urged the international community to build pressure on Myanmar for a peaceful environment inside Myanmar that could help start the repatriation. Hasina also sought help from China to mediate.

But in the recent past, the situation in Rakhine state has become more volatile after a group called Arakan Army started fighting against Myanmar’s security forces. The renewed chaos forced more refugees to flee toward Bangladesh and elsewhere in a desperate move to save their lives. Hundreds of Myanmar soldiers and border guards also took shelter inside Bangladesh to flee the violence, but Bangladesh later handed them over to Myanmar peacefully.

As the protests took place in camps in Bangladesh on Sunday, the United Nations and other rights groups expressed their concern over the ongoing chaos in Myanmar.

Washington-based Refugees International in a statement on Sunday described the scenario.

“In Rakhine state, increased fighting between Myanmar’s military junta and the AA (Arakan Army) over the past year has both caught Rohingya in the middle and seen them targeted. The AA has advanced and burned homes in Buthidaung, Maungdaw, and other towns, recently using drones to bomb villages,” it said.

“The junta has forcibly recruited Rohingya and bombed villages in retaliation. Tens of thousands of Rohingya have been newly displaced, including several who have tried to flee into Bangladesh,” it said.

UNICEF said that the agency received alarming reports that civilians, particularly children and families, were being targeted or caught in the crossfire, resulting in deaths and severe injuries, making humanitarian access in Rakhine extremely challenging.