The BRP Sierra Madre
A map depicts the competing claims over the South China Sea. Chinese claims are depicted in red. Source: VOA
The ships that patrol the South China Sea include every type of ship you can imagine, including everything from cargo ships and fishing vessels to destroyers designed to hunt down submarines. And it’s probably not surprising - the area is critical for global trade, with about USD $3.4 trillion passing through each year ($140 billion of which comes from Hong Kong alone), and is a contested maritime area split up between the claims of at least six countries*.
But there’s one ship in the area that truly stands out from the rest.
The Sierra Madre is a Filipino ship that was built in the US in 1944. Left behind by the end of the Second World War, the Sierra Madre was little more than a sentry and transport vessel for decades - until it became the lynchpin of a dispute at the heart of one of East Asia’s security hotspots.
In 1999, the ship was intentionally run aground on the disputed Second Thomas Shoal, a region under dispute between Manila and Beijing. Ever since, it has been manned by Filipino soldiers on three month-long shifts, who pass the time by watching films, singing karaoke, and playing basketball on the ship’s helipad while keeping an eye out for patrolling Chinese ships. They even fish in the waters, and sell the dried catch back on short to earn an extra income.
The ship, however, is falling apart - as is expected of a beached vessel from the 1940s, after 25 years exposed to the elements. The situation is made even worse as past attempts to resupply and reinforce the aged ship have been met with harassment and ramming attacks from the Chinese coast guard, including one incident in which a Filipino sailor lost his right thumb after the Chinese coast guard attacked the ship with machetes and hammers. It' makes sense too - if the ship collapses from disintegration, there can’t be a permanent Filipino presence on the Shoal, and China can enjoy an easier time of claiming it.
The Sierra Madre is in a state of deep disrepair from age and exposure. Source: The Guardian
But the occasional Filipino resupply mission succeeds - the most recent one from July of this year managed to reinforce part of the Sierra Madre’s hull. Whether this is a violation of a past agreement set up by past president Rodrigo Duterte to stop doing so, or a response to growing pressure from China, is entirely up for debate. But while the legacy of the Second World War can be felt all around us - in the South China Sea, the Sierra Madre means that we can see it.
TAI Score: Degree 5. The situation in the South China Sea is incredibly tense and there is no real end in sight - in fact, the dispute between Beijing and Manila is arguably the most tense standoff in the region. Things are not helped by the presence of the Sierra Madre - but they are certainly worsened by the aggressive Chinese actions in preventing its prolonged existence. Tensions over the area stretch from Singapore to Washington DC - and have a very real potential to spiral out of control.
*The six countries are China, Vietnam, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Brunei.
