Food Delivery and the hunger for truthful stories

Film on West Philippine Sea fisherfolk, sailors hits cinemas

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FOLLOWING a cancellation of its initial run at the Puregold CineP-analo Film Festival back in March, the documentary Food Delivery: Fresh from the West Philippine Sea finally premiered at Gateway Mall 2 on Aug. 13. It is now showing at Gateway Cinemas in Quezon City, and in select Ayala Malls Cinemas throughout the country.

The film follows Filipino fishermen and sailors stationed at the frontlines of the fight for national sovereignty. Through their personal stories, the documentary sheds light on the struggle to get food to and from the distant isles in the highly contested West Philippine Sea (WPS).

At the premiere, presented by the Quezon City local government and the QCinema International Film Festival, two of the fishermen in the center of the film attended to share their thoughts after the screening.

“Itong paglaban, hindi lang laban ng mangingisda. Laban po ito ng lahat ng Pilipino (This fight is not just the fight of fishermen. It’s the fight of all Filipinos),” Ozman Pumicpic told the audience.

“Lagi ko iniisip, paano na lang kung habangbuhay ito mangyayari? Paano ’yung mga bata pa na lumalaki tapos sa susunod na henerasyon ito pa rin ang nangyayari? (I always think, what if this is a lifelong battle? How about the children growing up, then the next generation who will still face these problems?)” he said.

China claims sovereignty over nearly the entirety of the South China Sea, a key waterway that sees more than $3 trillion in annual ship-borne commerce, despite much of it also being claimed by various Southeast Asian countries, including the Philippines.

For the Philippines, the area of the South China Sea under its jurisdiction is referred to as the West Philippine Sea — and these are the same waters where Subic-based Mr. Pumicpic and his community make a living.