The Department of Foreign Affairs dismissed claims by some groups that the Philippines is a mere pawn in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) and that the territorial dispute is a matter among great powers.
Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo also insisted that the country is not just a bystander to the situation and would always protect its territorial interest in the WPS.
"There are some that want to project the WPS as a matter between great powers, and we are just pawns in this game. This is a notion we fully reject,” Manalo said in his message during the National Security Cluster Communications of the “Bagong Pilipinas” Media Engagement and Workshop held at the Philippine Merchant Marine Academy in San Narciso, Zambales over the weekend.
In his message, read by DFA Assistant Secretary Marshall Louis Alferez, the DFA chief said that the ongoing territorial dispute in the WPS is a matter among great powers “is a simplistic way of explaining a complex issue designed to manipulate people into being disengaged.”
'INNOCENT PASSAGE' Four Chinese warships were spotted on Thursday passing through Sibutu Passage off Tawi-Tawi, reportedly close enough for residents of coastal communities to identify their hull numbers and take clear photos and videos. Based on photos taken by Nakim Nuruddin Nakamo, the Chinese warships were identified through their bow numbers as 887, 552, 174 and 105, and all were armed with cannons. The Armed Forces of the Philippines' Western Mindanao Command confirmed the "innocent passage" of four People's Liberation Army Navy vessels through the Sibutu Passage off Tawi-Tawi. Nakim Nuruddin Nakamo Photos
“Involvement in this maritime and territorial struggle of global importance is happening at the behest of the Philippines. We are not bystanders to the situation," he said, while urging Filipinos to always protect the country’s interest and act cohesively.
"The South China Sea is shared by many coastal states, and our portion of it is what we call the WPS. For far too long, the narrative surrounding the WPS has been obscured by misinformation and manipulation," he said.
"Disinformation campaigns run rampant, seeking to distort the truth and sow discord amongst nations and amongst our people."
Manalo stressed that the "illegality of the nine-dash line" must be exposed as it is being used to threaten the livelihoods of Filipino fishers and for reclamation activities that degrade the environment.
"We should not allow ourselves to be painted as the aggressors or the violators. Our role is to stand firm. We stand firm on the foundation of international law, with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and the 2016 Arbitration Award as our anchors,” he said.
“We categorically reject the excessive claims and aggressive actions by the People’s Republic of China in the WPS, for they stand in stark opposition to the rule of law and the very principles that ensure peace and stability in our region.”
Manalo said the pursuit of peace and security for the Philippines could be strengthened further by building strong partnerships with other nations in all levels.
"We should build partnerships with states that share this advocacy, and craft venues for them to articulate their support for our principled commitment to UNCLOS,” he said.
Maritime dialogues have been established with the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Vietnam, Indonesia, India and the European Union.
Environmental destruction in WPS
The marine resource assessment that showed damaged resources within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone (EEZ) will be part of the evidence being gathered to support a case build-up against China for environmental destruction and degradation.
National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea (NTF-WPS) spokesperson and Philippine Coast Guard Commodore Jay Tarriela said at the Saturday News Forum in Quezon City that the findings of Dr. Jonathan Anticamara have been presented to the investigating bodies, pending the arrival the completion of the official scientific study.
Anticamara is a professor at the University of the Philippines (UP) Institute of Biology in Diliman, Quezon City.
“From the Philippine Coast Guard together with BFAR (Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources), since we are the lead agencies in doing this research assessment with support, of course, from the University of the Philippines, we’re going to formally forward this to the NTF-WPS,” Tarriela added.
Anticamara and his team conducted the marine resource assessment in Pag-asa Cays 1, 2 and 3 to provide scientific basis on the destruction of marine resources inside the EEZ.
“Now, in the case of the pile of rubble, what I found is that there are many characteristics of this pile of rubble and I’ll present the details of these characteristics that kind of convinced me that this is not a typical island formation that’s basically formed by nature. Many of these characteristics suggest that most likely these piles of rubble are somewhat… siguro ano (maybe), made by humans,” he said.
Another key finding is that many of the corals in Pagasa Island in the Kalayaan Island Group and the cays are degraded.
“So, ibig sabihin ng (the meaning of) degraded is that many of the corals are now small, many of the large corals are now dead and there’s not a lot of live corals per unit area, so kaunti na lang ‘yung buhay (there are few of them that are still alive). And if you look at fish, it’s the same, all the areas that we surveyed, we swam, we dove… there’s not a lot of fish anymore,” Anticamara said.
Main suspect
Tarriela said the operations of Chinese vessels, which far outnumber Filipino ships, cause massive damage to coral reefs.
China also has the experience and capability in reclamation activities in the South China Sea.
“So, if there is one country that we need to hold accountable dito sa (for the) damage ng environment na ito, sa ating (here, in our) coral reef dito sa (for the damage in our coral reefs in the) cays, that will only be the People’s Republic of China,” he said.
Lawyer Jay Batongbacal of the UP College of Law, also the director of the Institute for Maritime Affairs & Law of the Sea, said China’s activities are violations of the international law because they contravene obligation to preserve and protect the marine environment.
“At the very least, itong destruction ng (the destruction of the) corals and deliberate alteration ng (of the) marine environment, puwedeng maging basehan iyon ng isa pang kaso na pa-follow up doon sa 2016 arbitration (it can be a solid basis for another case to add to the 2016 arbitration),” Batongbacal said.
The 2016 arbitral ruling sided overwhelmingly with the Philippine claims in the WPS and disregarded China’s nine-dash line.
Other options
Aside from the usual diplomatic protest, Batongbacal said there are other legal options for the Philippines, like calling for a fact-finding mission before an international organization, leading to another case litigation
Department of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Undersecretary Teresita Daza said in a forum on Friday that the PCG must file an official report as basis for the next action, whether it would be a diplomatic protest or a summon.
Tarriela assured the Coast Guard shares the level of emotion the public is experiencing and brushed off public criticisms on the response to China’s provocative actions.
“We have a chain of command. We respect the guidance of our President (Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.). The guidance of the President is that we should not be provoked, we should not be the reason of intensifying the escalation for China to justify to once again bringing the next level of aggression, kung anuman ang plano nilang gawin (whatever they’re thinking of next),” Tarriela said.
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