By: Prince Dan We
The ill-equipped, small Island Nation and Archipelagic State of more than 7,100 Islands, the Philippines played its vital role in peaceful resolutions for china's invasion in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea) territories for decades but still failed as china will not cooperate and severely bully this small country resulting to exert the last recourse to seek help from the United Nations.
China as one of the top 3 trading partners of the Philippines always enjoyed so much favor and pampered by the Philippine Government to flourish the importance of friendship and being neighbors and also a historical and ancient trading partner to the Southeast Asian Nation we back since 982 AD onwards as recorded in the history after a merchants from "Ma-i" (now as "Mindoro") brought their first wares to Guangzhou China that invites china to see the existence of the small scattered island kingdoms and begin trading with the several small kingdoms exist of what we called now " group of more than 7,100 islands, the Philippines".
The history says the Philippines and China was once best friends and trading partners since the 982 AD but gradually changed after the perception of the communist china in the present time switched from best friend to an invader and seeks to expand its territory and to take control the territory of the old best friend (A betrayal to a trustworthy friend).
China did not even see and doesn't have any "know how" that the small and scattered kingdoms exists of what we called now Philippines if the traders from "Ma-i" (now as "Mindoro") did not brought their wares to Guangzhou China opposite from china's claim that they makes expedition and discovered the Philippines so now they claimed the Philippines' territory because they are the one who firstly discovered the islands.
The old best friends now turn into a territorial competitor for the hottest territorial disputes in Asia that ends up to severe bullying from the giant china.
The world even noticed how submissive and how deep is the patience of the Philippines to stand and remain calm from the severe bullying of the Asia's giant.
To take note, the Philippines already showed several very unacceptable way of obedience to china's demand just to preserve that friendship resulting to severe bully by illegally taking controls to some Philippine territory and claiming most part of the western part of the country.
Laguna Copperplate Inscription (LCI), the first written document found in a Philippine language. The inscription itself identifies the date of its creation as the year 900AD. When in 1989 Antoon Postma deciphered the text of the Laguna Copperplate Inscription at the National Museum of the Philippines, he discovered that the inscription identified the date of its creation as the "Year of Syaka 822, month of Vaisakha." According to Jyotisha (Hindu astronomy), this corresponded with the year 900 A.D. Prior to the deciphering of the LCI, Philippine history was traditionally considered to begin at 1521, with the arrival of Magellan and his chronicler, Antonio Pigafetta.
Philippines' submissive action to China's illegal activity in the territory
Illegal Fishing
To avoid a mass discontent to the Philippines government, the previous administration itself tried to hide to the public the reality that china's fishermen are fishing in the Philippine waters which makes the Philippines fishermen think that the Philippine territory where they fish is also a common ground for fishing between china and the Philippines and they both fish harmoniously with Chinese fishermen as acting dominant in the Philippine waters as they are using bigger fishing boats compared to the Philippine small wooden fishing boats.
The China's illegal activity in the rich fish stocks Philippines waters is actually a violation of Philippine law but the Philippine government because of its weakness tolerates the Chinese' illegal activities in the country and keep quiet and avoid the issue to be open in the public but because of the freedom of communications and SMS/texting is available, Filipino fishermen disclosed it to the public resulting to a public outrage to the Philippine government's ineffectivity which giving pressure to the recent administration to act in accordance with the law and tried to find solutions to regain the public trusts.
It could be late or not yet too late but the Chinese fishermen already used to it that they are free to fish in the Philippine waters which they think now that they also owned the area as the Philippine government tolerates them to do so for several decades.
The Philippines is just very lenient in nature in sharing its resources to the neighbors as the culture of giving is well-practiced by every Filipinos. It's not just China actually enjoys the freedom to fish in the Philippine waters but also Vietnam which they even used to reached up to Palawan to fish. In the South, the Philippines and Indonesia also enjoys sharing of their waters to fish in both areas in Celebes Sea. The spirit of giving in both countries for their caught fish is still even enjoyed by both fishermen for Philippines/Chinese or Philippines/Vietnamese even the territorial disputes begun. It is just the government complicate the issue for the business and economic interest but the ordinary people in both countries still enjoyed giving and fishing harmoniously.
Territorial invasion
It has been documented in 1995 during the time of former President Fidel Valdez Ramos when the Philippines discovered the illegal occupancy of Chinese fishermen in the Panganiban Reef or also known as Mischief Reef, a 75 miles from Palawan. The Philippines wants the Chinese fishermen to dismantle their hide-out but China talked to the Philippines to allow their fishermen use the area for shelter. Since the Philippines still enjoy TRUST and FRIENDSHIP with china, President Ramos allowed them to stay but a surprise burst out to the Philippines when the Filipino Fishermen fishing near the Panganiban reef were captured and jailed by Chinese Military for a week, then China build a Military garrison there and claimed the Panganiban reef as China's territory inside the Philippines. (How untrustworthy china is)
On July 2012 china's invasion incident happened in Zambales Province in Panatag Shoal or also known as Scarborough Shoal / Bajo de Masinloc (Spanish) when the Philippines restricting the law for the protected and endangered species and the Philippines Coast Guard discovered that china are poaching inside the Philippines territory where boarding of the Philippine Coast Guard to the Illegal poaching Chinese fishermen happened then China's Paramilitary ships patrolling inside the Philippine Waters come to the rescue and blocked the Philippine Coast guard from detaining the illegal Chinese poachers.
The standoff between china and the Philippines occurred but the Philippines is determined to deescalate the tension as part of peaceful procedure both agreed to leave the area because of the approaching typhoon and both china and the Philippines leave the Panatag Shoal.
Another surprised to the Philippines is after the agreement of the 2 to leave the Panatag Shoal, the China indeed leave but suddenly returned back to Panatag Shoal and install a blockade to the passageway so the Philippines could no longer enter the area.
China is so much showing their untrustworthiness in the region that their words are unrealistic and they are cruel opportunistic. They always do against what has being agreed.
Illegal occupancy in its own territory
The incidence in the Panganiban Reef / Mischief reef is not a lone incident of China's bully to the Philippines.
Even though the Panganiban Reef is just 75 miles from Puerto Princesa City of Palawan and well within 200 nautical Miles Exclusive economic Zone of the Philippines, China entered and exercise their law power inside the Philippine territory by capturing Filipinos fishing inside the Philippines and jailed them.
Other popular issue when Chinese navy attacked the Philippine- British Oil Exploration Firm in the Recto Back /Reed Bank near Palawan and within 200 Nautical miles EEZ of the Philippines.
The Philippine plan to develop the oil resource rich area in its EEZ is blocked by china which is very unlawful. The abused of being giant and being powerful of china hit so much to the Philippines but still the Philippines remained calm and remain friendly to china not to angry the giant. What a very pity country Philippines in a claw of dragon china. The Philippine economy could grow even faster than the present growth if China will stop their illegal activities and exercising their illegal powers in the Philippine territory but the direction of china is getting worst and aggressive opposite from what the Philippines is hoping for.
Now, the Philippine fishermen are not allowed to fish in the Philippine territory in the Panatag Shoal area as Chinese navy will attacked them and would possible jail them as what it did in Panganiban reef. Filipino fishermen don't want to be held as criminal by the foreign invader in its own land.
During the Scarborough Standoff, Hongkong Ship killed Filipino fishermen in the Philippine "Payaw" or artificial fish sanctuary built by the Philippines.
The Last Recourse
Philippine Foreign Secretary Alberto del Rosario said the Philippines had elevate the conflict to the United Nations ITLOS, a decision came after Manila had exhausted all political and diplomatic avenues into the matter.
The tribunal of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea will arbitrate whether the presence of China's activists in the South China Sea violates the Philippine's sovereignty, Reuters reported.
China might probably ignore the Philippines but Emeritus Professor Carl A. Thayer of Australia's University of New South Wales said that the tribunal may be able to move forward without Chinese participation
GlobalPost's Benjamin Carlson, reporting in Hong Kong, accused the Philippines as seems emboldened by the United States' implicit support, and has become remarkably assertive in its claims against China.
But the Philippines' action is not furtherly examined by the Globalpost reporter in hongkong that the Philippines is doing the last recourse because the Philippines could not afford that china will reign in all Philippines territory and will block the Filipino fishermen to fish in the Philippine waters and want to push back china as it is already stepping inside the Philippines and exercising its power illegally.
Already more than 2 thousand fishermen from Zambales Province are now jobless as they could no longer fish in the waters because china's paramilitary will attack them anytime.
"It will be interesting to see how it plays out, given that, in public, Chinese diplomats pay lip service to the international law, but if the UN were to rule against China, it's very hard to imagine them abiding by the ruling," Carlson said. "To be honest, China is similar to the US in that respect."
Hai Nguyen a Vietnam citizen commented in the Global Post article saying "As a matter of routine, China will lie about its baseless history of ownership, about willingness to negotiate and about peaceful resolution... but, enough evidences of their aggression and escalated hostilities... will mute their noises. Neighbors are watching the courage and effectiveness of the Philippines and the world is watching the bully China, closely."
However, even if the tribunal orders China to respect the Philippines claims, China could always choose to ignore it. But China could not escape from the International condemnation if it will not obey the Order if the United Nations to respect the Philippine Territory. Sanctions from the United Nation would probably hurt china's economy if it would remain adamant if UN will give a favorable decision to the Philippines.
There has been no reaction from Beijing over the request for a tribunal.
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This is Prince Dan We, one of the Authors and Editors of the Rebuilding for the better Philippines. I want to leave to you the word for today as "In God We Trust"
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