Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario. Photo by DFA
MANILA, Philippines—The United Nations arbitral tribunal may soon rule on whether it has jurisdiction over the Philippines’ arbitration case seeking to invalidate China’s nine-dash line claim to almost all of the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea), according to the Department of Foreign Affairs.
Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario has said the five-member ad hoc body may decide whether or not it has jurisdiction over the case in “maybe one or two weeks” as the Philippines pursues the legal action as a “last resort” to clarify maritime boundaries with China in the contested waters.
“I think it’s moving forward,” said Del Rosario on the sidelines of the commemoration of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) 46th Anniversary Wednesday night.
He said the body, currently holding court at the Hague, has been looking into the question of jurisdiction and may release a ruling “hopefully soon.” The panel held its first session on July 11.
Filed in January, Manila’s legal action seeks to nullify China’s nine-dash line claim and to halt its incursions into the country’s established maritime domain. The proceedings continue despite China’s refusal to participate, asserting “indisputable sovereignty” over the waters.
The Philippines made the move, hoping that China would sit down with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) to finalize the long-delayed Code of Conduct (COC) that would enforce legally binding guidelines on discipline among claimant nations.
The COC is envisioned as an upgrade of the “watered down” Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC).
Del Rosario is set to fly to Thailand next week for Asean’s preparatory meetings on the COC talks. The meeting will be held Wednesday, ahead of consultations on the COC between the Asean and China in Beijing next month.
“I think there’s full consensus on the part of the Asean, and it has always been our hope that we would have China on board in terms of a full and effective implementation of the DOC for one and moving on to, as I said, an expeditious conclusion of the COC,” said Del Rosario.
After meeting Vietnamese Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh in Manila last week, Del Rosario said the Philippines and Vietnam have agreed to convince the Asean to prod China to proceed to negotiations, instead of mere consultations, on the COC.
Apart from the Philippines and Vietnam, two other Asean countries—Malaysia and Brunei—have partial claims to potentially rich territories in the West Philippine Sea.
During a visit in Vietnam on Monday however, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said China would be in “no rush” to conclude the COC as he called out certain countries for having “unrealistic expectations” over the talks and for disturbing the process.
Responding to this, Del Rosario reiterated the Philippines’ position reminding China of the “core issue,” its nine-dash line claim. The Philippines believes this delineation is “expansive, excessive and in gross violation of international law.”
http://globalnation.inquirer.net/82761/un-arbitral-panel-may-soon-decide-on-jurisdictional-issues-in-ph-case-vs-china
PHL ignores China’s three-way proposal to address sea disputes
The Philippines on Tuesday ignored China’s three-way proposal to address the long-running disputes in the South China Sea, saying the problem lies in Beijing’s massive claim over the resource-rich waters.
Last week, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said the territorial rifts can be resolved through consultation and negotiation, the implementation of the non-binding Code of Conduct in the South China Sea and joint exploration.
But at a news briefing, Foreign Affairs spokesperson Raul Hernandez said: “Can we once again re-direct China to the core issue which is its claim of indisputable sovereignty over nearly all of the South China Sea under its nine-dash line position.”
Manila’s statement is the latest manifestation of longstanding territorial feud between China and the Philippines over South China Sea territories that have reignited in recent years by tense confrontations between Chinese and Philippine vessels in two disputed shoals – Panatag (Scarborough) and Ayungin (Second Thomas Reef) – off Manila’s western coasts.
China’s massive claim to the South China Sea and its persistent incursions in Philippine waters have prompted Manila to seek legal recourse through international arbitration under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea or UNCLOS. The Philippines refers to portions of the South China Sea as West Philippine Sea.
The ill-equipped Philippine military is no match to China’s, but the Philippines believes that justice can be dispensed equally through international law.
China refused to join the arbitration, saying the basis of Manila’s arguments are groundless.
“The Philippines has asserted before the arbitral tribunal to which China has been invited but has refused to participate that the nine-dash line claim is expansive, excessive and in gross violation of international law, specifically the UNCLOS. This is the core issue and it behooves China to address it,” Hernandez said.
Competing claims to the South China Sea, a strategic waterway believed to be sitting atop huge gas and oil deposits, by the Philippines, China, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan have sparked occasional violence and now regarded as a potential regional flashpoint for armed conflict. —Michaela del Callar/RSJ, GMA News
http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/320850/news/nation/phl-ignores-china-s-three-way-proposal-to-address-sea-disputes
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