DEPLOYED SPRATLY SOLDIERS OUT IN CHINA SEA GET 'LONELINESS PAY'
PAGASA ISLAND, SOUTH CHINA SEA, MAY 4, 2008 (STAR) (AP) This sun-splashed island is so remote that soldiers are paid a “loneliness fee” for deployment here, and the few residents are encouraged with free meals to live in a nascent village without a single car, store or Internet access.When a Philippine Air Force C130 cargo plane flew in Friday with a fresh supply of rice, beds, chessboards and a flat-screen TV, a few women hitched a ride and quickly sought out their husbands among the troops for a little personal time.
The battle for ownership of the potentially oil-rich Spratly Islands has settled into an uneasy standoff since the last fighting, involving China and Vietnam, that killed more than 70 Vietnamese sailors in 1988. The other claimants are Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines and Taiwan.
But for dozens of Filipino troops and villagers on steamy Pag-asa, the biggest of seven islands and two reefs occupied by the Philippines in a swath of the South China Sea, it has been a constant struggle against isolation, broiling sun and fierce storms.
They need to keep an eye, of course, on the Chinese and Vietnamese troops stationed nearby on two separately garrisoned islands.
The Spratlys are composed of more than 100 small islands and reefs.
“The greatest enemy here is yourself,” said Airman 1st Class Wilson Dajao, who waited on the airstrip for his wife, Joanne. “The challenge is to conquer despair. My only child celebrated his first birthday last Oct. 28, and I was not there.”
When his wife emerged from the plane, Dajao welcomed her with a tight hug.
“Honey, you have something to bring home,” he told her. “I caught a lobster as big as my arm.”
At first glance, Pag-asa - “hope” in Tagalog - could captivate city-tired visitors with its tropical serenity: coconut trees rustling in a light breeze and turquoise sea gently slapping a powder-white beach. But the salty air soon assaults the eyes, and the sun saps energy.
The fight against isolation is evident. Islanders are provided with karaoke microphones and TV sets. A trashcan is filled with empty bottles of gin and Coca-Cola. Satellite TV and a local cell phone service connect the island to the world, but are often cut due to cost.
Philippine Air Force chief Lt. Gen. Pedro Cadungog, who met with troops and inspected runway repairs, said his men get P10,000 monthly extra incentive, fondly called “loneliness pay,” for the hazard and isolation. Rice, noodles and canned food are regularly shipped to troops and civilians.
The dormant Spratlys dispute has not been a worry among villagers - even when soldiers have to sometimes fire ground-mounted anti-aircraft machine guns to keep them in shape. But soldiers gathered the villagers several weeks ago to brief them on contingency procedures in case of any assault on the island, two residents said.
“One resident asked me, ‘Are we going to be attacked?’” midwife Melda Jacob told The Associated Press.
But nothing unusual happened, and life quickly returned to its laid-back calm, she said.
The reason for the security briefing was unclear. It could have been procedural, but it coincided with Manila news reports about a joint three-year seismic study by the state oil companies of China, Vietnam and the Philippines to explore for possible oil and gas reserves in the South China Sea, Jacob said.
No prospects of war
Cadungog, however, gave assurance that there will be no military confrontation among claimant countries to the Spratlys chain of islands.
“Not in my lifetime that will happen (forceful takeover of Philippine-occupied islands)). Besides warfare is no longer the name of the game, it’s economic power,” he said, allaying fears that major claimant countries like China and Vietnam might resort to use of force to bolster their claim over the area.
Cadungog said all the claimant countries are aware of the code of conduct signed in 2002. He said any violent acts initiated by any claimant countries would be condemned by the international community.
The Air Force chief flew to Pag-asa with several family members of the soldiers assigned in the area on board a C-130 cargo plane, to see how the Rancudo airfield could be developed to accommodate other types of aircraft.
Only light planes and short-takeoff and short-landing aircraft like the PAF’s C-130 can land at Rancudo airfield.
Developing the runway would cost the government P200 million and Cadungog estimated that most of the money will go to the hauling of materials from Puerto Princesa City in Palawan.
To prevent erosion, the airstrip is currently being maintained both by the Air Force and the Philippine Navy.
Outgoing Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief Gen. Hermogenes Esperon Jr., who visited the troops in Pag-asa last month, said the military would be promoting the area as a tourist spot.
With its white sand beaches and pristine waters and world-class diving sites, Pag-asa could even surpass the internationally renowned Boracay, if developed into one of the country’s key tourist attractions.
Aboveboard
Opposition lawmakers have expressed concern that President Arroyo’s administration may have failed to protect the country’s interests in the Spratlys, alleging the exploration pact covers a part of Philippine territorial waters that are not in the disputed zone.
The government has refused to make the agreement public and has denied any irregularities. A map of the exploration site obtained by AP shows the southern part of the site near waters off western Palawan.
More interestingly, the study is scheduled to end next month, fueling speculation on whether oil or gas had been detected. The three countries have made no statements.
A Southeast Asian diplomat monitoring the oil search, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue, said researchers may need another year because the oil hunt has been slowed by bad weather and rough seas.
A substantial oil strike would heighten the stakes in the sprawling region at a time of skyrocketing oil prices, said Aileen Baviera, dean of the Asian Center of the state-run University of the Philippines.
But it’s difficult to say if an oil find would prompt more aggressive acts by the claimants, particularly China.
A 2002 pact between the Association of Southeast Asian Nations - which includes four of the claimant countries - and China calls for any Spratlys conflict to be resolved peacefully and for the countries involved to pursue confidence-building activities, Baviera said.
“There is an expressed preference for cooperation,” she said.
The Philippine military has not detected any aggressive action in recent years. The US military presence in Asia helps discourage aggression, Cadungog said.
“The United States is watching over this area,” he said.
In the meantime, Pag-asa residents take it a day at a time.
Dajao, the air force man, said he preferred the isolation to his previous assignment on southern Basilan island, where he helped battle al-Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf militants.
A Navy man, Christo Rey Esteban, described sprawling Pag-asa as a paradise compared with a treeless Spratly islet, just over a hectare in area, where he was assigned for three months in 2001.
“There, you wouldn’t want to look at the calendar,” Esteban said. – With Jaime Laude
Reported by: Sol Jose Vanzi
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