KUDOS to former Philippine Pres. Benigno Aquino III, former DFA Sec. Albert del Rosario and the whole team which, on behalf of the Filipino people, filed, argued, and won the case against China before the United Nations Arbitral Tribunal.
The court found China’s claims illegal in its territorial dispute in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea), an area rich in seafood and other resources.
As ABS-CBN News reported, this landmark ruling was the first case against China’s expansive claims, which has sparked international alarm and prompted the United States to send warships on “freedom of navigation” patrols.
Kababayans in the United States gave their all-out support to the Philippine government in this fight, with Fil-Ams in the East Coast spearheading protest rallies against China’s “bullying” and intrusion in the West Philippines Sea. Manny rallies and five years after, these Fil-Ams are back, but this time it was to celebrate the victory of the Philippines with the tribunal decision that favored the Philippines.
“The rule of law. The United Nations has fulfilled its existence, not war but peace through the rule of law, so this is the triumph of the Philippines because we have followed the regular process of settling disputes,” said US Pinoys for Good Governance Chairman Loida Nicolas Lewis in a report by The Filipino Channel’s “Balitang America” New York Correspondent Don Tagala.
Bobby del Rosario, the son former DFA Sec. Albert del Rosario, was among those who celebrated this victory in front of the United Nations in New York.
“I’m gonna quote a couple of words from what my father said: China’s a great superpower, and to be a great superpower you have to follow the laws and the rules of the land…and International Law is a great equalizer,” del Rosario said in the report.
Fil-Am leaders, however, acknowledge that this victory is just a moral and legal victory, which cannot be enforced against China. The biggest question and challenge remains: will China now exit the disputed area and leave the West Philippine sea to the Philippines, pursuant to the provisions United Nations Convention on the Law of the Seas (UNCLOS) that were upheld by the tribunal ruling?
China boycotted the hearings at the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague and has repeatedly vowed to ignore the ruling, saying its armed forces would defend its sovereignty and maritime interests.
After the ruling was announced, Cui Tiankai — Beijing’s Ambassador to the U.S. — said the tribunal’s decision denying China’s claims in the South China Sea will “intensify conflict and even confrontation,” as reported by Reuters.
The Chinese ambassador, however, also said that Beijing remains committed to negotiations with other parties in disputes over the South China Sea waters that have some of the world’s most promising oil and gas fields and fishing areas.
The Philippines’ newly sworn-in President Rodrigo Duterte had said that he was seeking a “soft landing” with China after the decision. ABS-CBN News reported that Foreign Affairs Secretary Perfecto Yasay Jr. said he would seek negotiations with Beijing, mindful that the tribunal had no powers to enforce its decision.
In response to the reaction of the Duterte administration to the UN tribunal ruling, Fil-Am community leader Loida Nicolas Lewis further said on Balitang America, “Para sa akin…We negotiate according to our constitution. We keep 60 percent, you [China] get 40 percent. If they don’t want to accept that, then they are a rogue state. Because it is very clear from the tribunal we have 100 percent ownership, but that doesn’t mean we cannot share 40 percent.”
According to Balitang America Correspondent Don Tagala, the US Pinoys for Good Governance are amenable to President Duterte’s negotiation with China, but with pre-conditions.
How do you think the Duterte administration should handle the negotiation with China?
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Gel Santos Relos is the anchor of TFC’s “Balitang America.” Views and opinions expressed by the author in this column are are solely those of the author and not of Asian Journal and ABS-CBN-TFC. For comments, go to www.TheFil-AmPerspective.com, https://www.facebook.com/Gel.Santos.Relos
