Militarization of the South China Sea

As if China’s latest move of establishing a military garrison on the disputed Paracel Islands in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea) is not bad and provocative enough, now comes Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense (MND) confirming that it will complete the installation of a certain number of cannons and mortars on Taiping Island in the South China Sea next month in a move to enhance its military presence in the disputed seas amid the escalating conflict over the region.

Taiwan controls the Dongsha Islands, the largest island group in the South China Sea, as well as Taiping Island, the largest of the Spratly Islands and the only one where fresh water is available.

A total of eight sets of 40mm autocannons and a certain number of 120mm mortars is said to be shipped to the island by the end of August after a legislative committee demanded in May that the MND should do so on Taiping Island and Dongsha Island within six months.

What we seem to be seeing now is the beefing up of arms and forces in the most unlikely place between these two antagonistic countries.

China regards Taiwan as a breakaway province which it has vowed to retake, by force if necessary.
It must be recalled that Chiang Kai-shek's Republic of China (ROC) government, which fled the mainland to Taiwan in 1949, at first claimed to represent the whole of China, which it intended to re-occupy. It held China's seat on the United Nations Security Council and was recognized by many Western nations as the only Chinese government.

But in 1971, the UN switched diplomatic recognition to Beijing when the sleeping giant started waking up and flexing its muscles and the ROC government was forced out.

While China belittles Taiwan’s existence as a sovereign state, Taiwan’s leaders, however, claim that it is clearly much more than a province, arguing that it is a sovereign state, as it has its own constitution, democratically-elected leaders, and over 400,000 troops in its armed forces.

With the militarization of the South China Sea by the Chinese and Taiwanese governments, not to mention the minuscule presence of naval forces from the Philippines and Vietnam, which are both active participants in the sovereignty dispute in the region, the more that we see tension building up and the prospect of resolving the dispute slipping away.

For as long as China continues asserting, for historical reason, its claim of sovereignty over nearly all of the sea, which is believed to hold vast amounts of oil and gas, a rich fishing grounds and is home to shipping lanes that are vital to global trade, it leaves no doubt in everybody’s mind that the region will be an inevitable flashpoint in the years to come.

China shuns diplomatic solution on shoal dispute

Enclosed the red line are the disputed areas in the South China Sea

How else would one interpret the latest Chinese declaration over the highly disputed Scarborough Shoal or Panatag Shoal or what Beijing calls Huangyan Island, when this economic giant and military bully ignores the sovereign rights of a small, struggling, nation and claims the whole South China Sea (West Philippine Sea) and what is underneath it as its territory by virtue of historical grounds and that it won’t never go to court to settle the matter?

A declaration of hostilities, sort of, isn't it?

Is this the way to settle territorial disputes in the 21^st century by intimidation, provocation and military muscle flexing instead of using diplomatic approach as the appropriate and rational way of settling issues that has to do with sovereign rights?

The court referred to here is the International Tribunal on the Law of the Seas (ITLOS) in Hamburg, Germany, where the country feels would be the real arbiter for such a contentious issue.
The Philippines insists that the shoal belongs to the country simply because of its extreme proximity to Zambales, which is 220 km only, compared to 840 km from the nearest coast of China in Hainan province.

Yet, China wants that the Philippines should “fully respect China’s sovereignty” and with a threatening tone even said that the Philippine government must “commit to the consensus we reached on settling the incident through friendly diplomatic consultations, and not to complicate or aggravate this incident so that peace and stability in that area can be reached.”

Is this saying that China is giving the Philippines an ultimatum?

If China has historical proof to show that the contested shoal is part of their territory, then why can’t they agree to show it to the whole world or bring it to the ITLOS? Why swiftly reject the proposal of the Philippine government that the dispute be resolved by the UN-backed ITLOS?

On the other hand, what the Philippines will bring to the ITLOS, with or without Chinese representatives, are old maps of the ‘Archipelago Filipino’ dating back to Spanish colonial times showing that “Bajo Scarburo,” the shoal now called Panatag by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), is a constituent part of Sambalez (now Zambales province).

Senator Edgardo J. Angara, who has a collection of ancient maps of the country said that the maps would easily disprove the territorial claim of China to the shoal and its surrounding waters, which in the first place do not show any historical or legal grounds under the United Nations Convention on the Laws of the Sea (Unclos).

“It’s clear that Scarborough Shoal is part of our cartography during the Spanish colonial times,” he said. “We have maps (reproduced) from the original, which was made in 1734. During that time, Scarborough is already part of the Philippines.”

An 1875 map was the “product of the most comprehensive mapping and charting work in the Philippines lasting more than 20 years (1849-1870).”

Angara said the original maps were deposited at Spain’s Museo Naval de Madrid.

The question now is: If this testament to our ownership of the shoal is not honored by China, what will stop them from disembarking on our territory and stripping us of our dignity?

Let us be pragmatic about it. We need help. We can’t stand on our own. We need the support of the world community before this part of the world becomes a flashpoint.

ASEAN should be a force to reckon with

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is a group of ten member countries that was organized to encourage political, economic, and social cooperation in the region for the good of each country and the welfare of their people.

According to ASEAN’s guiding document, the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia (TAC), there are six fundamental principles members have to adhere to and they are:

1) Mutual respect for the independence, sovereignty, equality, territorial integrity, and national identity of all nations.

2) The right of every State to lead its national existence free from external interference, subversion or coercion.

3) Non-interference in the internal affairs of one another.

4) Settlement of differences or disputes by peaceful manner.

5) Renunciation of the threat or use of force.

6) Effective cooperation among themselves.

From these fundamental principles one will immediately notice that the ASEAN is devoid of any military alliance. The organization is simply anchored on economic grounds.

Having said that, while member nations has respect for one another’s sovereignty, each member also demands that nations outside of their organization must also recognize their dominion over their lands and whatever else that belongs legally to them.

It is in this context that as the whole world is seeing how China is flexing its military muscles with impunity in the South China Sea or the West Philippine Sea, as the government has come to call it, specifically in areas where the Spratly group of islands (south of the Phl)and the Scarborough Shoal or Panatag Shoal (north of the Phl) are located, the Aquino government is asking the ASEAN to take a stand on the dispute with China over territorial claims as other member nations have also a stake in some parts of the contested region.

While we are claiming only that which the UN Convention of the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) guarantees as within the 200 nautical miles Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), China’s argument, however, is that the whole of the West Philippine Sea is theirs on the basis of [its] nine-dash line claim, using a historical record.

China's historic nine-dash claim

The nine-dash claim is China’s delineation of its territory in the South China Sea, with nine dashes on the map that enclose all of the Spratly archipelago, parts of which are claimed by the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia, Vietnam and Taiwan.

But, how could, for instance, China include in its claim the Scarborough Shoal, a protrusion of reefs lying north of the Spratlys and only 120 km off Zambales province on the western coast of Luzon? How could it be theirs when it is even less than the 200 nautical miles EEZ as prescribed by UNCLOS when it talks about the country’s continental shelf?

If China is claiming a solid mass that close to our shore, what will stop China from claiming Palawan later on?  It is for this reason that the ASEAN, as a group of respected nations with equally respected and competent leaders, should come out supportive of our claim and united and forceful in condemning the aggression and expansionist role China is playing in the region of the South China Sea, for if it could happen to us, it could, without doubt, happen to them, too.

The Philippines is thankful for Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario for spearheading this move and for standing by his argument that ‘abiding by the rules set by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea is the legitimate way of dealing with conflicting territorial claims in the disputed waters.’

ASEAN must show China that even without military alliance it remains a force to be reckoned with.