(UPDATE) THE Philippine soldier who lost a thumb during a clash with Chinese sailors in Ayungin Shoal in June is back on duty in the West Philippine Sea with the recovered digit, Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Chief Gen. Romeo Brawner said Monday.
In an interview, Brawner said Seaman First Class Underwater Operator Jeffrey Facundo’s thumb was reattached sometime in September and is fully functional.
He said the procedure to reattach Facundo’s thumb was performed free of charge by doctors from the Makati Medical Center Foundation.
Sailor First Class Underwater Operator Jeffrey Facundo recounts the collision between a Chinese Coast Guard vessel and a Philippine vessel conducting a rotation and resupply mission in Ayungin Shoal on June 17, 2024 during the Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on June 25. PHOTO BY RENE H DILAAN
Meanwhile, China has not yet responded to the Philippines’ demand for payment for damage and equipment losses suffered when the Chinese Coast Guard (CCG) harassed the rotation and resupply mission from Manila to Ayungin Shoal in June.
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“China has not yet responded. But we have already given a letter to the Department of Foreign Affairs to make this part of our demand,” Brawner said during a media briefing at Camp Aguinaldo in Quezon City on Monday.
The AFP has demanded €60 million from Beijing after CCG crews took at least seven guns, pierced two rigid-hulled inflatable boats and damaged navigation and communications equipment during the June 17 intimidation.
Eight Philippine Navy sailors were injured, including Facundo.
Ayungin Shoal is a submerged reef in the Spratly Islands, 105 nautical miles west of Palawan and within the Philippines’ 200-mile exclusive economic zone.
Since 1999, the BRP Sierra Madre has been grounded in Ayungin Shoal to serve as an outpost for Philippine troops and a symbol of Philippine sovereignty. FRANCISCO TUYAY,