Eugenio B. Bito-onon Jr.

Eugenio B. Bito-onon Jr. is a Filipino politician and member of the Liberal Party,[1] who has been elected Kalayaan Mayor twice, serving since 2010.[2] He was re-elected in May 2013, winning his re-election bid with 108 votes against rivals Noel Osorio (69 votes) and Rosendo Mantes (46 votes).[3] Bit-onon failed in his re-election bid in 2016,[1][3] coming in second place with 59 votes and losing to the eventual winner Choy del Mundo with 142 votes.[4][5]

Bito-onon is a pioneer and town planner who moved to Thitu Island in 1997 to help strengthen Filipino sovereignty claims to the South China Sea.[6] Believing that a civilian presence helps to strengthen Filipino claims to the South China Sea.[7] Bito-onon helped to establish the first deliberately settled civilian town in the Spratlys on Thitu Island in 2001.[6] In June 2012, he helped establish the Pag-Asa Elementary School, the first school on Thitu Island.[6] Referred to by Hayton as Cloma's heir, Bito-onon also oversaw the completion of a small statue of Tomas Cloma on Thitu Island.[8]

Bito-onon is a strong supporter of Filipino sovereignty and vocal critic of Chinese activities in the South China Sea.[2][9] Bit-onon has also actively promoted international awareness of the Filipino view of the dispute, having hosted and acted as a guide for multiple international news organizations, including Seth Doane from CBS News,[7] Eric Campbell from ABC News,[10] and other reporters, including ones from the New York Times,[11] CNN[12] and the Asahi Shimbun,[13][14] in tours of the Filipino-held islands of the South China Sea. He has had several encounters with the Chinese Coast Guard while travelling around the Filipino-occupied Spratly Islands.[10][11][13][14]

Bito-onon advocates greater US involvement in the South China Sea dispute.[2][15] He has visited the US and held meetings with the Filipino-American community to promote awareness and elicit support for his cause.[15][14][16] He also promotes turning the Spratly Islands into an ecotourism zone[3][14][16][17][18]

Bito-onon claims that the energy resources in the South China Sea are enough to support China's needs for the next 105 years.[2] Thus, he believes that the Philippines should occupy the remaining unoccupied islets in the South China Sea,[3] as the possible energy resources would also safeguard Filipino energy independence.[2]

Based primarily in Puerto Princesa, where his office resides,[8][19][20] Bito-onon is generally only able to visit Thitu Island once a year.[12] His wife lives and works in Puerto Princesa.[14][21] Together, they have two sons[21]

Notes

  1. 1 2 "Mayor of Kalayaan Island ready to face challenger". Politiko Luzon. Aug 6, 2015. Retrieved Oct 27, 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Hernández, Javier C. (September 28, 2015). "Q. and A.: Eugenio B. Bito-onon Jr. on China's Island Expansion". New York Times. Retrieved 27 October 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Laude, Jaime (August 6, 2015). "Election fever sweeps Kalayaan Island town". The Philippine Star. Retrieved 27 October 2015.
  4. dela Cruz 2016.
  5. dela Cruz, Ace. "President-elect Duterte most voted in Pag-asa Island". Updating Filipinos Online. Retrieved 11 May 2016.
  6. 1 2 3 Hayton 2014, p. 105.
  7. 1 2 "Philippines' human buffer against China's land grab". CBS News. June 29, 2015. Retrieved 27 October 2015.
  8. 1 2 Hayton 2014, p. 106.
  9. "China's new fishing policy 'absurd'- Kalayaan island mayor". Philippines News Agency. January 15, 2014. Retrieved 27 October 2015.
  10. 1 2 Campbell, Eric (May 20, 2014). "Reef Madness". ABC News (Australia). Retrieved 27 October 2015.
  11. 1 2 "A Game of Shark And Minnow". New York Times. Oct 23, 2013. Retrieved 27 October 2015.
  12. 1 2 Etzler, Tomas (July 2014). "Wrecks, rats and roaches: Standoff in the South China Sea". CNN. Retrieved 27 October 2015.
  13. 1 2 Laude, Jaime (August 19, 2014). "Phl fishing boat harassed by Chinese coast guard". The Philippine Star. Retrieved 27 October 2015.
  14. 1 2 3 4 5 Parameswaran, Prashanth (September 29, 2015). "Interview: A Philippine Perspective from the Middle of the South China Sea". The Diplomat. Retrieved 27 October 2015.
  15. 1 2 Esmaquel II, Paterno (Oct 2, 2015). "Mayor in Spratlys: Philippines 'caught between 2 lovers'". Rappler. Retrieved 27 October 2015.
  16. 1 2 Jun, Nucum (October 10, 2015). "Mayor rallies Fil-Am support for threatened island in West PH Sea". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved 27 October 2015.
  17. Orendain, Simone (August 24, 2015). "Philippines Eyes 'Ecotourism Zone' in Disputed S. China Sea". Voice of America. Retrieved 27 October 2015.
  18. "Kalayaan to Lure Tourists Soon". Palawan Times. Jun 1, 2015. Retrieved 27 October 2015.
  19. Kaplan 2014, p. 155.
  20. Moss, Trefor (May 23, 2014). "Countries Around South China Sea Bolster Claims With Island Outposts". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 27 October 2015.
  21. 1 2 "Filipinos fly flag in South China Sea". Zamboanga Today. July 19, 2011. Retrieved 27 October 2015.

References

  • Hayton, Bill (2014). The South China Sea: The Struggle for Power in Asia. Yale University Press. 
  • Kaplan, Robert D. (2014). "Chapter 6: America's Colonial Burden". Asia's Cauldron: The South China Sea and the End of a Stable Pacific. Random House Publishing Group. 
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