THE fifth anniversary of the country’s victory against China’s claims in the South China Sea is a reminder that the Philippine fight for sovereignty is far from over because of the superpower’s continued encroachment in Philippine territories, Vice President Leni Robredo said yesterday.
The Netherlands-based Permanent Court of Arbitration, in a ruling on July 12, 2016, invalidated China’s sweeping claim in the South China Sea, to include the West Philippine Sea, under its so-called nine dash line theory.
China claims most of the South China Sea while the Philippines claims parts of it, like Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam.
President Duterte has set aside the arbitral court ruling in a bid to court Chinese loans and investments for his infrastructure projects and has been publicly siding with the China. Last May, he belittled the case filed by the previous administration said the arbitral victory is a piece of paper that he can throw away in a trash bin.
Beijing has repeatedly said it does not recognize the ruling and has proceeded to reclaim and construct artificial islands in the area, three of which are within Manila’s 200-mile exclusive economic zone.
Robredo said the Philippines must use its historic arbitral win “to assert the rights of Filipinos over the West Philippine Sea, in particular for the fishermen who are most affected by the persistent harassment.”
“Pagpapaalala ‘yong fifth anniversary bukas na mayroon tayong pinaglalaban pa… na marami tayong mga kababayan na naka-base doon ‘yong kanilang hanapbuhay (The fifth anniversary is a reminder that we’re still fighting for it… that may of our countrymen still rely on it for their livelihood),” she said on her weekly radio show on RMN radio.
Robredo said Filipino fishermen are the most affected by the Chinese encroachment of the areas that are well within the country’s exclusive economic zone.
She said the Philippines’ move to challenge China’s sweeping claims before the Permanent Court of Arbitration had been “much anticipated” even by the international community, stressing that the government should use it to “collaborate” with other affected countries.
“‘Yong pagkapanalo natin, makasaysayan ‘yon. Tayo ‘yong pinakaunang bansa na dinala ang China to arbitration (Our victory was historic. We were the first country to bring China to arbitration,” Robredo said. “Ito ay may epekto hindi lang sa atin, pero may epekto ito sa lahat ng may claims over sa South China Sea (It has an effect not only on us but on all countries that have claims over the South China Sea).”
While the issue is sovereignty and territorial encroachment, Robredo said, the “face” of the problem can be seen through the eyes of the fishermen who are losing their livelihood .
“Tapos sila pa iyong maha-harass, sila iyong tatakutin, sila iyong papaalisin (They are even the ones harassed, threatened and being driven away),” said Robredo.
The Vice President also vowed to help fishermen of Masinloc, Zambales after speaking with Ernie Egana who has personally experienced harassment from the Chinese Coast Guard.
Egana, who has been fishing in the Scarborough Shoal since 1994, said the Chinese Coast Guard has blocked their access to the traditional fishing grounds, then, at another encounter, seized their equipment. The Chinese would also board their boats and take their best catch.
Egana was a guest at Robredo’s radio program. He and his fellow fishermen’s experience made headlines years ago when a video of the Chinese Coast Guard getting their catch was featured in a TV documentary. He said nothing has changed, even after authorities were made aware of their situation.
He said fishermen fear something would happen to them.
Robredo vowed to send a team to Masinloc to find out how the Office of the Vice President (OVP) can best help the fishermen in their livelihood.
In 2019, the OVP and its Angat Buhay partners extended financial assistance and fishing equipment to the crew of the fishing vessel Gem-Ver, which was rammed, then abandoned, by a Chinese ship at Reed Bank. Robredo visited the fishermen twice.
Two years into the incident, Gem-Ver’s fishing crew and owners are reportedly still waiting for compensation from the owner of the Chinese vessel.
The opposition Liberal Party chaired by Robredo, in a statement issued for the anniversary of the arbitral ruling, quoted the late President Aquino as saying during an awarding occasion last February, “We stood up to them at the onset and now so many others are doing the same. We stood up to China because it was the right thing to do.”
The LP said it is the essence of the ruling which recognized the Philippines’ right in the West Philippine Sea in the South China Sea.
“In the wake of PNoy’s death, the Hague ruling is as much a promise as it is a reminder of what good, brave, strong governance can yield. As we commemorate this landmark ruling, so too do we commemorate the kind of leadership that makes victories like this possible: A leadership founded on the belief that `the Filipino is worth fighting for,’ as opposed to one that cowers and yields to bullies.”
“To treat this ruling as merely a piece of paper is to lack the courage and resolve required of leadership,” it added.
