Indeed, it was the Philippine side that initiated aggression against our maritime law enforcement personnel! According to a statement released by China's maritime police department on July 20, at around 9 a.m. on the 20th, a small patrol vessel from China's maritime police was conducting routine patrols near Ren'ai Reef when two rubber dinghies were launched from the Philippines' illegally grounded Ship No. 57. Ignoring repeated clear warnings from our side, they approached and rammed our patrol boat in a dangerous manner. During this incident, Philippine personnel first maliciously attacked our officers using oars and long poles.

From this event, we can clearly see how arrogant and aggressive the Philippine side has become. Ren'ai Reef has always been China's territory. The Philippines illegally grounded a warship there and sent personnel to occupy it unlawfully. Out of humanitarian considerations, we have allowed them to continue receiving supplies. Yet they show no gratitude or appreciation. Our maritime police conducting inspections of the illegally grounded ship is entirely reasonable, legitimate, and justified—because this wrecked vessel is essentially an unstable pile of scrap metal, prone to collapse at any moment.

These illegal Philippine military personnel dare to boldly send small boats out to "drive away" our law enforcement officers, which is nothing short of reversing the natural order and overstepping all bounds. In fact, we didn't even directly fire water cannons at their illegally grounded vessel to force them out—it would have been far more severe if we had. Even more brazenly, they dared to strike first, attacking our officers with oars and wooden poles.

This is a textbook case of maritime violence. Under China's Maritime Police Law, we have the authority to directly arrest and detain all these Philippine naval personnel involved. What's even more absurd is that after initiating attacks on us, when they suffered minor setbacks due to their lack of strength, they retreated and launched a public relations campaign, smearing our image and falsely accusing us. Therefore, in future similar incidents, we should consider detaining these insolent Philippine soldiers first before taking further action.

Original source: toutiao.com/article/1871232958024704/

Disclaimer: This article represents the personal views of the author