Amidst the talk in April, it happened that the people of Batanes could be caught in the middle of a war outbreak between Taiwan and China, just a few hundred kilometers away. Cabardo was recalled.
Cabardo, a mother of two in her 40s, expressed to a reporter from BenarNews, an online news platform associated with Radio Free Asia, that her neighbors started to worry that month when American servicemen arrived in this area using tilt-rotor aircraft and vessels for joint exercises with their Philippine counterparts.
Centro, a quaint eatery located in the serene capital of the archipelago, Basco, is owned by Cabardo. With a population of under 20,000, the island chain witnessed a situation where individuals were stockpiling food, leading to a frenzy of panic purchases.
People residing in the small province of Batanes, which is encircled by the sea in the Luzon Strait, are anxious about the possibility of being caught in the crossfire between rival superpowers if a conflict erupts over Taiwan.
The recent drills involving foreign troops in the Philippines got the locals buzzing, as they were preparing for a potential invasion by China and the threat to the connected war games was so significant that it was officially denied by both the United States and the Philippines.
The people of Batanes typically believe the news coming from Manila, particularly the government of the country’s capital and seat.
“They became anxious,” she recollected during the interview with BenarNews in May, “thus when the accounts regarding the instruction surfaced and the Americans were observed in our province, they believed they would become embroiled in the dispute.”
These lush green islands, Taiwan and the Philippines, are celebrated for their charming cogon grass roofs and stone-crafted coral walls. Batanes serves as a natural demarcation between them.
Batanes, the smallest province in the Philippines, has a land area that is one third of the total land mass of Metro Manila, which measures 203.2 square kilometers (78.4 square miles). It is encompassed by 4,500 square kilometers (1,737 square miles) of sea.
China and the United States, its geopolitical adversary and trusted partner of both Taiwan and the Philippines, have recently garnered focus as a possible hotspot in the geopolitical conflict between Taiwan and China, due to the strain between Taiwan and China, specifically in Batanes.
Analysts say Batanes is key terrain that both sides may vie to occupy were war to break out in the Taiwan Strait.
Jay Batongbacal, the director of the Institute for Maritime Affairs and Law of the Sea at the University of the Philippines, expressed that China might potentially acquire authority over the Batanes Islands in order to utilize them as a strategic location for encompassing the Bashi Channel with anti-ship and anti-air missile protection, thereby ensuring dominance over the Luzon Strait.
He expressed to BenarNews while describing potential situations, “China will initiate an attack on Taiwanese defenses prior to commencing amphibious and aerial invasions. The invasion of Taiwan by China would necessitate the blockade and isolation of [Batanes] to prevent access by the U.S. And other allied forces.”
‘China will make us a focal point.’
China regards Taiwan as a rebellious territory, and considering the close proximity of their territory to Taiwan, former Batanes Gov. Telesforo Castillejos acknowledged his awareness of the difficult situation that local residents are facing, being an ordinary citizen.
Castillejos, who was raised in Basco in a household of agricultural workers, expressed, “In that case, China will single us out,” should I permit the Americans to employ our island as a launching point for any undertaking.
He stated, “If we consider the small chain of islands, such as Batanes, how much more significant is the concern for the Philippines regarding the disputed territories claimed by China in the South China Sea – especially considering the fact that our country won an international tribunal decision. I must clarify that I am not an expert, but this is a layman’s perspective on the West Philippine Sea.”
I will not be surprised on the first day if China claims some old maps that show Batanes as their territorial waters.
The ruling authority in the maritime region has been carrying out a program to construct artificial islands, along with its military expansionism. However, Beijing has so far refused to comply with the international arbitration tribunal’s landmark case, which the Philippines won in mid-2016, regarding its territorial dispute with China over the waterway.
Indonesia does not regard itself as a party to territorial disputes in the waterway, with historic rights claims overlapping parts of Indonesia’s EEZ. China claims nearly all of the South China Sea, including the waters within the exclusive economic zones of Taiwan, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, and Brunei.
According to Castillejos, 76, the central government has largely neglected Batanes, even though they have occasionally sent coast guard and navy patrol ships to the islands, albeit infrequently.
He informed BenarNews that our government is incapable of safeguarding our territorial waters. The identical issue persists to this day. China is depleting our marine resources. We are unable to even protect our territorial waters.
In order to counteract any Chinese strategy, which one analyst referred to as “central,” the United States intends to target Taiwan under an extended defense agreement. The United States was granted access to four additional military bases in the Philippines in February of this year.
The Philippines, a previous American colony, offers legal protection for extensive collaborative military exercises between the two enduring allies, and specifies that U.S. Troops can only alternate their presence in the Philippines. This agreement complements the Visiting Forces Agreement of 1999 and was established through the signing of the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement by the Philippines and the U.S. In 2014.
Marcos Jr.’S strategies regarded Castillejos, similar to how possessing the EDCA could assist in safeguarding the citizens in the event of a dispute arising between China and Taiwan, President Ferdinand.
“He expressed his unwavering commitment to praying and maintaining faith, with the hope that a war would never come to fruition, as it would inevitably lead to a lack of any victorious party.”
According to Batanes Vice Gov. Ignacio Villa, local authorities have contingency plans in place should something bad occur in the Taiwan Strait.
Considering the estimated 150,000 Filipinos working in Taiwan, they could build a tent city to accommodate thousands of refugees.
“The Americans will be assisting in this action,” he stated.
‘We are residing harmoniously in this location’.
The sentiment was echoed by German Amboy Caccam, the mayor of Basco. He stated that the United States offered reassurances and promised support in response to the concerns expressed by the inhabitants of these islands.
He explained, “It is anticipated that Batanes will serve as a transit point. The repatriation of Filipinos in Taiwan returning home is the first instance of repatriation.”
“If Batanes were to become a hub for transit, we might encounter a surge of refugees. Our main focus is on ensuring an ample supply of nourishment and clean water. Presently, we are ill-equipped to meet the requirements of incoming refugees,” he stated. Consequently, although we possess adequate resources to sustain the current populace.
Caccam, a former educator at a public school, stated that should he be tasked with making a decision, he would disapprove of the Americans remaining in the nation to designate their province as the site for forthcoming military exercises.
He stated, “If that is the government’s policy, we are unable to take any action. However, due to their existence, we become a possible objective. Our current residence is characterized by tranquility. I am not fond of this situation.”
Tourism and fishing serve as the primary means of sustenance for the inhabitants of Batanes, commonly referred to as Ivatan by the locals. Batanes is renowned for its customary, resilient houses designed to endure any typhoon.
According to Bishop Danilo Ulep, the leader of the Catholic Church in Batanes who has resided in these islands since 2017, the residents were resilient individuals capable of adjusting to any challenges they faced.
This, he stated, now possibly encompassed being a pawn in a broader geopolitical conflict.
Ulep informed BenarNews that the individuals in this location “exhibit an extraordinary capacity to conquer any type of hardship.”
The man described as the cloth of the islanders, thrives without the commonly found luxuries on the “mainland”, by assisting and supporting one another through remarkable displays of solidarity, as humble and modest people in Batanes.
Ulep said, “I have personally witnessed the quality in them. They have the strength to triumph over any misfortune that comes their way.”