Filipino volunteers send Santa convoy to cheer up isles disputed by ‘bully’ China | South China Sea #Filipino #volunteers #send #Santa #convoy #cheer #isles #disputed #bully #China #South #China #Sea

Santa Claus is coming to the South China Sea, on a mission to spread Christmas cheer to Filipino fisherfolk, troops and coast guard officials while hopefully avoiding an international dispute with China.

At 1am on Sunday, the convoy of 40 fishing boats loaded with Christmas donations, Father Christmas figurines and nativity displays set sail from El Nido, Palawan, in the Philippines, on its way to disputed areas that Beijing claims, without legal grounds, as its own.

The trip, organised by the coalition Atin Ito (meaning “It’s ours”), involves dozens of volunteers, including youth leaders, faith leaders and fishers, and will deliver supplies donated by the public.

“We want to send a strong message that a small country like us, the Philippines, will not be silenced or bullied by China,” says Rafaela David, the president of Akbayan party, which is a co-convenor of Atin Ito.

The mission has had a rocky start. On Saturday, as the Christmas convoy prepared to set off, Philippine officials said its Chinese counterpart had repeatedly fired water cannon to obstruct civilian government vessels that belong to the fisheries bureau. This resulted in “significant damage” to one of the boat’s communication and navigation equipment, it says. It also accused China of using a long-range acoustic device that caused “severe temporary discomfort and incapacitation to some Filipino crew”.

In a statement, the Philippines’ National Task Force West Philippine Sea vehemently condemned “the illegal and aggressive actions” by China, which took place near the disputed Scarborough Shoal.

On Sunday, the Philippines accused China of firing water cannon and ramming its resupply vessels in a separate incident, causing “serious engine damage” to one vessel. The incident happened in the vicinity of Second Thomas Shoal, where a small contingent of troops live onboard a rusting warship that was deliberately run aground in 1999 to protect Manila’s claims.

The South China Sea, one of the world’s most strategically and economically important waterways, is fiercely contested. It is claimed almost entirely by China, while the Philippines and neighbouring countries also have competing claims. In 2016, an international tribunal in The Hague found there was no legal basis to China’s vast claims. Beijing, however, has ignored the ruling.

Over the past year, tensions between China and the Philippines have intensified, with the Philippines, a US treaty ally, frequently accusing Beijing of dangerous and aggressive behaviour.

China has said previously that its coastguard acts in accordance with the law, and has accused the Philippines of provoking political drama, and Manila’s treaty ally, the US, of interfering.

The Christmas convoy had initially planned to first visit the vicinity of Second Thomas Shoal, which falls within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone, but says it had changed its route in response to Sunday’s incident, and would instead proceed directly to Lawak and Patag Islands to drop off donations.

After reaching Lawak Island the convoy will “conduct a thorough assessment of the situation” with the intention of still passing through the general vicinity of Second Thomas Shoal on the way back to El Nido, David says.

David tells the Guardian on Saturday that the Christmas convoy hopes to get as close as safe and practical to BRP Sierra Madre, the dilapidated second world war-era ship that has been grounded in the shallow waters of Second Thomas Shoal for more than two decades. The convoy will listen to the advice of the coast guard, she says.

“We’re hoping that at least we can have a good view of this symbolic ship that is a sign of our resistance to what China is doing,” David says. The convoy will hand over Christmas gifts to the Coast Guard to deliver to troops onboard the ship, she says.

Donations to be given to troops and fishing communities include noche buena – Christmas packages including pasta, ham and cheese – as well as decorations depicting nativity scenes, traditional lanterns, toys for children and basic necessities such as solar-powered lights.

The amount of donations given by the public reflects “a sense of solidarity that Filipinos feel especially when they see our fishermen or our coast guard being harassed by China,” says David. “We cannot help but feel a sense of indignation for what China is doing to our fellow Filipinos.”

More donations are still being collected, she says, and the team hopes to carry out further missions in the future. “We want to normalise and even regularise civilians going to the West Philippine Sea,” she says, using the term Manila uses for waters in the South China Sea that fall within the country’s 200-nautical mile exclusive economic zone.

Fishing communities have for years complained that their catches are shrinking, blaming overfishing and other environmentally destructive activities by China, as well as harassment by Chinese vessels. David says: “We really want to show them that Filipinos are behind them and they’re not alone in facing China.”