(PUERTO PRINCESA CITY) — President Benigno S. Aquino III said he is against developments being done by other claimant countries in the South China Sea (West Philippine Sea) and that the Philippines might bring the issue to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS).
Vietnam, Malaysia, China and other countries are building or improving facilities in islands or atolls they claim, which President Aquino said is a violation of the Declaration on the Conduct (DOC) of Parties in the South China Sea agreed by the ASEAN and China in 2002.
“We brought this up and we will be bringing it up again before the ASEAN and probably also in ITLOS,” the President said in an interview during the celebration of the Philippine Navy’s 116th anniversary here in Palawan.
If the Philippines follows suit and builds its own facilities in the contested territories, the country will be guilty of violating the spirit of the 2002 declaration, he said.
Claimant countries agreed in 2002 not to inhabit previously uninhabitable areas and maintain the status quo to prevent the escalation of tensions, he said.
Reading a portion of the declaration, the President said: “The parties undertake to exercise self-restraint in the conduct of activities that would complicate or escalate disputes and affect peace and stability…”
This includes refraining from inhabiting the uninhabited island, reef, shoals, and other features, and countries must handle their differences in a constructive manner, he said.
China’s reclamation activities in the Mabini Reef are obviously a violation of the declaration, he said.
The President said he is alarmed by unconfirmed reports of recent clashes in the Paracel Islands involving China and Vietnam. The reports said a Vietnamese vessel was sunk by China.
In the recent ASEAN meeting in Myanmar, President Aquino said he joined dialogues expressing alarm over the developments in the contested areas.
“Na-aalarma tayo dito at sumama tayo sa panawagan na meron nga tayong usapan, nandun na nga sa DOC, iyong sa pag-i-increase ng tension,” he said.
“Nandun nga iyong lahat na nagsabi, ‘will conform to international law,’ lahat nagsabi ng ‘peaceful negotiations’ at tayo ay nababahala na bakit ganito ang nangyaring mga developments.”
In his recent meeting with President Aquino, Vietnamese Prime Minister Tan Dung reported that the number of Chinese vessels in the Paracel Islands has increased to more than 100.
Asked by reporters how the country would respond in case it encounters similar problems, the president said government agencies and the Department of National Defense are constantly monitoring the situation and will respond accordingly. (Malacanang News release)
