The incident at the Reed Bank occurred on June 9 , 2019 when a Chinese vessel rammed the Philippine fishing boat , F/B Gem-Ver , which carried 22 fishermen , causing the latter to sink . All of the fishermen were rescued by the Philippine Navy . For several days after incident , Duterte was kept silent about the incident until June 17 when he eventually made a statement , saying that the incident was just the " maritime incident . " Because of the incident , several militant groups have desired to impeach Duterte for allowing " China to fish in the Exclusive Economic Zone ( EEZ ) in the West Philippine Sea . " Despite the United States being highly critical to Duterte 's war on drugs , most of the militant groups – particularly the left-wing groups – also aimed at the United States through their placards or banners due to " imperialism " and neoliberal policies , with even displaying the Trump-Duterte effigies . Activists have claimed that despite the condemnation , the US continues to fund the war on drugs and Duterte 's anti-insurgency program . Moreover , they cite the continuation and upholding of earlier treaties such as the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement ( EDCA ) as examples of the US breaching Philippine sovereignty . Anti-imperalist group League of Filipino Students also accused Duterte of allowing the American entry of warships and other military equipment in which as part of the Balikatan exercises in the country
incident at the Reed Bank
2019 Reed Bank incident
Protests against Rodrigo Duterte