SAN FERNANDO CITY, La Union, Feb. 13 (PIA) -- The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) and the Philippine Information Agency (PIA) have teamed up for the first leg of a series of communication planning workshops aimed at strengthening transparency in the nation’s campaign on the West Philippine Sea (WPS) in this city on Feb. 12-14.

The workshop pooled together personnel from the PIA Central Office and its regional offices in Regions 1, 2, 3, and the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) to come up with a communication plan that also aims to strengthen mass support and awaken nationalism on the WPS issue.

Commodore Jay T. Tarriela, PCG spokesperson of the WPS, said through a heightened transparency campaign with the assistance of the PIA, the teamup can hopefully awaken nationalistic sentiment on the WPS and encourage people to actively participate in efforts to raise awareness and counter Chinese propaganda.

“Our foundation, the transparency approach, must be used for us to be more effective in countering and also to defeat the widespread fake news activities of the Chinese government,” Tarriela said.

He adds the PCG and PIA’s focus on transparency is seen as the country’s answer to the misinformation campaign of the Chinese government, and that through showing the realities of what is happening in the WPS, Filipinos can learn about the truth and help the Philippine government fight for its sovereign rights over the disputed area.

The transparency strategy has also paid dividends for the past full year of its implementation by the PCG, with a study conducted by OCTA research in December 2023 on 1,200 Filipino adults showing that around 72 percent of Filipino favor the country’s push to fight for its territorial rights on the WPS through expansion of its sea-based activities in the form of more troop presence and naval patrols over the said area. 

A strategic communication campaign in support to the country’s transparency initiative on the WPS can help strengthen an already strong sentiment of the Filipino people on the WPS issue.

Meanwhile, PIA assured the PCG of its support to the endeavor, vowing to use all of its resources to help the PCG in its campaign for transparency and the dissemination of the truth regarding the efforts being conducted on the WPS.

PIA Deputy Director-General Katherine Chloe S. De Castro added that the agency shall implement an all-hands on deck approach to support the PCG’s transparency approach and also noted the PCG’s support in ensuring that the workshop comes to fruition for the realization of the campaign and its objectives.

“The Philippine Information Agency would like to express its gratitude to the Philippine Coast Guard for their partnership and support to the workshop,” De Castro said.

In order to create a clearer understanding of the WPS issue, Atty. Fretti G. Ganchoon of the Department of Justice (DOJ) also presented the rights and entitlements of the Philippines on the 2016 Arbitral Ruling on the WPS.

“I hope that through this workshop, your misconceptions and misunderstandings have been cleared in order for you to write accurate details in the crafting of your strategic communication plan,” Ganchoon said. (JCR/AMB/MJTAB/CCMT, PIA La Union)