FB GemVer, the Filipino fishing boat sunk by Chinese vessel Yuemaobinyu 42212 on 9-June-2019 near Recto Bank within the Philippine EEZ had 22 Filipino fishermen onboard.
The Yuemaobinyu 42212 is a Chinese steel-hulled fishing vessel operating from Guangdong, China. It is 44 meters (144 ft) in length with a beam of 8 meters (26 ft).
The FB Gem-Ver is a Filipino wooden-hulled fishing outrigger owned and operated by Arlinda B. de la Torre of San Roque, San Jose, Occidental Mindoro, Philippines. It is 19 meters (62 ft) in length with a beam of 1.8 meters (5.9 ft), and powered by a diesel engine with a single screw.
The Chinese vessel abandoned the Filipino crew in distress at sea in violation of two maritime laws – United Nations Convention on Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and the International Convention of Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS). The GemVer fishermen were later rescued after a couple of hours by a passing Vietnamese vessel.
Finally, after nearly three years, the GemVer crew will receive compensation.
“I confirm that there has been a final settlement of the damage claims of the Gem-Ver fishermen against the owners of the Chinese vessel. The agreed compensation is Php6 million. I understand that the owner of FB GemVer will receive the amount on behalf of the fishermen and himself,” Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra said.
However, the negotiated amount is only half of what the prosecutors had set in September 2020. Php12 million or close to $250,000 was the amount calculated as due compensation to the Gem-Ver fishermen to cover for the vessel’s repair expenses, lost income, as well as civil and moral damages.
Justice Undersecretary Adrian Sugay confirmed that the “parties have reached an agreement, and that the Department of Foreign Affairs will be issuing an official statement on the matter in the coming days.”
This fishing vessel ramming incident that took place in 2019 is still fresh in the minds of the Filipino psyche. Back then, It had elicited public indignation in the country, ironically exacerbated by Pres. Rodrigo Duterte describing it merely as a “little maritime accident,” echoing the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman who pronounced the incident an “ordinary maritime accident.”
