On May 6, the Philippine National Police intercepted a Chinese fishing boat off Half Moon Shoal in the Nansha Islands and detained 11 Chinese fishermen, who were then shifted to the southwestern province of Palawan. The Philippines' alleges that the Chinese fishermen violated wildlife protection laws by poaching endangered marine turtles in its "exclusive economic zone". Nine of the 11 Chinese fishermen have been charged with poaching.

Manila's action against the Chinese fishermen is absurd and violates international laws. China has indisputable sovereignty over the Nansha Islands and their adjacent waters, including the Half Moon Shoal. China was the first to discover and name the islands, and the first to exercise sovereign jurisdiction over them, and it has ample historical and jurisprudential evidence to support this.

China exercised jurisdiction over the Nansha Islands without any disputes until World War II, during which Japan invaded and occupied them. In accordance with the "Cairo Declaration" and "Potsdam Proclamation", China resumed its sovereignty over the Nansha Islands in 1946. To maintain its sovereignty over the islands, China issued a "South Sea Islands Location Map" in 1948, which was re-adopted after the founding of the People's Republic of China.