Demonising China does nothing to untangle the contesting claims on South China Sea’s fish-rich waters

If they were asked which country is the biggest fish thief in the South China Sea, most casual observers would answer “China”. After all, it has been widely portrayed as the country behaving the worst in the area. A flurry of recent articles in prominent media, including The New York Times, perpetuates this perception, highlighting Chinese fishing vessels’ aggression in waters claimed by others and criticising Beijing for not preventing such “stealing”. But this perception needs to be put in…