Martin San Diego

Dec 24, 2024 | washingtonpost.com | Martin San Diego |Rebecca Tan

New visitors are flocking to the Sulu archipelago. But the specter of violence -- both real and imagined -- persists. TAWI-TAWI, Philippines - As rebrands go, the southern islands of the Philippines face what has to be among the toughest challenges. For a long time, these jungled islands were known as sites of war between the Philippine military and Muslim Moro insurgents, including several radical groups that carried out kidnappings, beheadings and bombings in the name of the Islamic State.

Oct 16, 2024 | washingtonpost.com | Elana Gordon |Peter Bresnan |Reena Flores |Sean Carter |Yasmin Coles |Alan Sipress | +1 more

Just 140 miles off the coast of the Philippines’ largest island is a sparkling blue lagoon that is rich with fish and minerals. This ring of reefs and rocks is called Scarborough Shoal. For centuries, it has been a place of open passageway and connection, drawing fishermen from all over the region. It’s a place that captain Jory Aguian, student activist Mathew Silverio and the rest of a small Philippine flotilla of wooden boats are determined to reach.

Jun 14, 2024 | washingtonpost.com | Rebecca Tan |Yasmin Coles |Martin San Diego

EN ROUTE TO SCARBOROUGH SHOAL — As several wooden fishing boats embarked from the Philippines one recent morning, more than 40 Chinese navy, coast guard and other vessels steamed toward them from the opposite direction, staging one of the biggest demonstrations of force in the contested South China Sea in over a decade. The fishing boats were less than halfway to their destination — a ring of reefs and rocks known as Scarborough Shoal — when a Chinese coast guard ship appeared on the horizon.

Jun 14, 2024 | stripes.com | Rebecca Tan |Yasmin Coles |Martin San Diego

Jory Aguian, the son of a shipbuilder and captain of the Paty, watches as a Chinese coast guard ship maneuvers near his boat.