Atin Ito Coalition members and volunteers launched their 3rd civilian mission to the West Philippine Sea from El Nido town at dawn on Tuesday, May 27.
The mission featured a peace concert aboard TS Kapitan Felix Oca, the same vessel the group used during its first mission in December 2023, before sailing to the WPS, where the same concert will also be held when they reach Pag-asa Island on Wednesday.
Akbayan Partylist president and Atin Ito convenor Rafaela David said the 3rd mission shows the civilians’ commitment to peace, compassion, community, and culture in the WPS, and not to militarization and warmongering.
She emphasized that the message of the mission is for “peace, unity, and solidarity.”
She added that the activity also aims to “uplift coastal communities by amplifying the lived experiences and aspirations of our fisherfolk, and to foster regional harmony through shared cultural and maritime narratives.”
“This is our way to highlight and amplify the voices of those who are most affected. From the fisherfolks, the frontliners, who are bearing the brunt of what China is doing,” David said in a press conference.
“We will sail not with warships, but with songs; not with hostility, but with harmony and solidarity,” she added.
She also said the historic peace concert is “our love song to the West Philippine Sea and the frontliners, everyone who stands up to protect it.”
The concert features national and international artists, including Noel Cabangon, Ebe Dancel, all-female band Rouge, rap group Morobeats, P-pop group Horizon, Japanese artist Fumi, Indonesian and Malaysian musicians Viona and Kai Mata, and South Korean K-pop girl group I:Mond.
“This sea concert will bring together artists, musicians, fisherfolk, and civil society leaders from the Philippines and neighbouring countries to promote peace, dialogue, and cultural exchange,” Philippine Rural Reconstruction Movement (PRRM) Ed Dela Torre stated.
“It will serve as a floating platform for diplomacy, solidarity, and people-to-people cooperation in one of the world’s most contested maritime regions,” he added.
