By Adrian H. Halili, Reporter
THE PHILIPPINES on Monday rejected China’s allegation that their sea dispute was mere “shadow play,” insisting that it is a sovereign state whose actions are driven entirely by national interest and not at the direction of other countries.
“The Philippines disagrees with the recent remarks of Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi characterizing the developments and incidents in the South China Sea as mere theatre staged under the direction of other countries,” the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said in a statement.
“For every move in the sea by the Philippines, there is a screenplay written by external forces; the show is livestreamed by western media and the plot is invariably to smear China,” Mr. Wang told a news briefing in Beijing on March 7. “People are not interested in watching the same performance again and again.”
The Chinese minister added that “those acting as others’ chess pieces are bound to be discarded.”
China claims other countries have worsened tensions in the South China Sea, where its coast guard and that of the Philippines have clashed several times.
“No creative analogy or play of words will mask the real issue, which is China’s refusal to abide by international law,” the DFA said, citing China’s continued disregard of the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and a 2016 ruling by a United Nations-backed tribunal in the Hague that voided China’s claims for being illegal.
It added that China’s dismissal of the rule-based international order has affected Filipino communities in the area, citing it neighbor’s “illegal, coercive, aggressive and deceptive behavior at sea.”
The Chinese Embassy in Manila did not immediately reply to a Viber message seeking comment.
Rommel C. Banlaoi, chairman of the Philippine Institute for Peace, Violence and Terrorism Research, said the two countries should rebuild confidence and promote mutual trust to de-escalate in the waterway.
“The DFA statement merely articulates the official position of the current government on the perennial issue involving China in the West Philippine Sea,” he said in a Viber message, referring to areas of the South China Sea within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone.
He added that such statement would have no bearing on the peaceful settlement of disputes between the two countries, “which can only be achieved through serious and sincere talks, consultations and negotiations.”
“What (China) is trying to do is to change the narrative by depicting us merely as a puppet of other countries, when in fact this is not the case,” Josue Raphael J. Cortez, who teaches diplomacy at De La Salle College of St. Benilde, said in a Facebook Messenger chat.
“What it is doing may be considered simply as a way to improve its optics despite continuous violations of our sovereignty and rights,” he added.
China claims more than 80% of the South China Sea, putting at odds with the Philippines, Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam, which also claim parts of the waterway where more than $3 trillion of ship-borne commerce pass through yearly.
The DFA also urged other countries to be cautious and “to avoid actions and words that only contribute to tensions in the region.”
