“We must make this report public. I don’t know if it has been release; I am not aware that it has been released. I call on the Malacanang to officially release the report. The report can be the basis for an action for damages under the Fisheries Code, because there was clear poaching and not only poaching, there was attack on our own fishermen,” Drilon told reporters in an interview.
“We may not be able to completely enforce our laws because of limitations such as we don’t know who the crew are, but the fact that we are acting on the incident will be an argument that will favor us in the future when we continuously defend our position that Recto Bank is part of the Philippine’s exclusive economic zone ,” the minority leader pointed out.
In filing the case, the senator said it would depend on who has jurisdiction, but in this case, “it’s a local court.”