Stratbase rejects China’s portrayal of PH as ‘provoker’ in WPS

MANILA, Philippines – A think tank on Monday rejected the Chinese Embassy’s accusation of the Philippines being the “provoker” in the West Philippine Sea.

The Stratbase Institute in a statement said that the embassy’s “calls for “restraint” ring hollow” when China has been engaging in dangerous acts at sea, saying it “rejects the Chinese Embassy’s attempt to invert reality by portraying the Philippines as the “provoker” in the West Philippine Sea.”

“The facts are consistent and well-documented: it is China’s maritime forces that repeatedly employ coercive and dangerous acts at sea, including water cannons, aggressive maneuvers, and ramming incidents that have damaged Philippine vessels and harmed even Filipino civilians,” Stratbase said.

As a basis for its argument, Stratbase cited the 2016 Arbitral Award that rejected China’s historical claims over the West Philippine Sea, under United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

“Respect for international law, not rhetorical accusations, is the only durable foundation for stability,” the think tank continued.

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Stratbase also rejected the idea that economic ties can excuse violations of sovereign rights,, adding that the country has “strong and mutually beneficial economic partnerships” with other countries, none of which pursue their own interests through intimidation or coercion at sea.

The group then voiced its support for dialogue and “a meaningful Code of Conduct,” as long as it is anchored in UNCLOS, and based on the 2016 Award.

“Proposals that constrain lawful partnerships, exercises, or resource development are not confidence-building measures; they are attempts to curtail the Philippines’ sovereign choices,” Stratbase pressed.

“Peace will not be secured by silencing the victim, but by ending the wrongdoing and upholding the rule of law,” it added.

In its own statement on Monday, the Chinese Embassy in Manila accused unnamed organizations of “spreading wrongful and misleading information about the so-called 2016 “South China Sea Arbitration.”

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The embassy insisted that the Philippines “illegally “grounded” the vessel” at Ren’ai Jiao in 1999, “seriously infringing China’s territorial sovereignty. According to the embassy, the Philippines failed to remove the vessel which grounded in Ren’ai Jiao due to technical failure.

It has also previously insisted that the Scarborough Shoal is “China’s inherent territory,” despite being within the Philippines’ Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).

Furthermore, the China Embassy also rejected the 2016 Arbitration, claiming that the Philippines’ unilateral initiation of the proceedings “violated the international law principles that require respect for sovereign states’ right to choose dispute-settlement methods.”

The embassy further pressed that the arbitral award “is null and void and has no binding force.”

“China neither accepts nor recognizes the award, and firmly opposes and does not accept any claims or actions based on the so-called arbitral award,” the China Embassy said in a statement. /jpv