THE principles behind international law are based upon universally accepted values and moral standards.
Today, more and more aspects of regional relations are regulated by international legal norms. They involve issues such as security, trade, finance, the environment and communication.
Quoting the late British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, Aquino said that the country will protect its sovereignty, yet will not allow the situation to escalate into an all-out war with China.
“It is ‘better to jaw, jaw jaw than to war, war, war,’” President Benigno S. Aquino said, regarding the Philippines’ approach in asserting its claim over the islands in the West Philippine Sea (aka South China Sea).
For decades, the Philippines and China (along with Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam) have disputed over parts of the West Philippine Sea.
China claims the largest swathe of the strategic waters, which is believed to have significant oil and gas deposits.
Over the last two years, it has been increasingly assertive in pressing its claims over the disputed waters, to the dismay of its smaller neighboring countries.
On February 25, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) condemned the harassment of Filipino fishermen in the waters of Panatag Shoal by the Chinese Coast Guard (CCG) on January 27.
DFA Spokesperson Raul Hernandez said that the CCG fired water cannons towards the Filipino fishing vessels to prevent them from fishing in the area, as reported to the DFA by the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).
According to DFA, this was not an unprecedented event as there were similar attacks against Filipino fishermen, which transpired in the shoal in previous years. At least nine similar incidents were recorded last year.
The Chinese embassy in Manila reiterated China’s sovereignty over the islands in the South China Sea and adjacent waters, including Huangyan Island (Panatag Shoal).
But Beijing urged Manila to resolve differences with China, through bilateral consultations and negotiations.
When tensions stifle dialogue and cooperation, you bring it to court—through diplomatic and peaceful means.
And when uncontrolled escalations and biased communication, make countries in contention unable design a solution, a third party gets involved and international law prevails.
Manila has already taken its claim for arbitration to a United Nations-backed International Tribunal on the Law of the Sea (ITLOS). China however, refused to participate in the arbitration.
The intergovernmental organization was created through the directive of the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea and established by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. It was signed at Montego Bay, Jamaica, on Dec. 10, 1982. As governed by international law, ITLOS has the power to settle disputes between UN states parties.
The five-member tribunal overseeing the arbitration already met in July last year, to establish rules of procedure and an initial timetable for the case.
It also gave a March 30, 2014 deadline to the Philippines to file a memorial that fully addresses “all issues,” including the admissibility of the country’s claim, the tribunal’s jurisdiction, and the merits of the dispute.
Meanwhile, AFP Chief of Staff Gen. Emmanuel Bautista vowed to defend Filipino fishermen against any Chinese “terror or intimidation” in the West Philippine Sea.
“Our fishermen will continue on fishing, assert their rights on those areas. They should go on with their lives and live their life as fishermen, not to bow down to terror or intimidation,” Bautista said.
To insure the general peace and to obviate the recourse to force, all parties involved should resort to the friendly settlement of international sea dispute.
In international conflicts, multilateralism should be the détente, before affected parties turn to belligerent forces.
On the surface, the continuous incursions into the country’s territorial claims look grim. But if the Philippine government continues to play its cards well, a decisive resolution might be in the offing.
(AJPress)
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