“The Philippines must be the first to implement the [ICC Tribunal] judgment… Now that we know that the West Philippine Sea is legally ours, then we should act like we own it.”

April 13, 2023 – This was the resolute answer of Professor Jay L. Batongbacal, director of the UP Institute for Maritime Affairs and the Law of the Sea, to a question fielded during “The Battle for Sovereignty: Navigating the Decades-Old Maritime Dispute Between the Philippines and China” forum held on April 12, 2023 at the University of the Philippines Manila Theater.

In his lecture, Batongbacal discussed the historical background, current issues, and suggested ways forward with regard to the South China Sea dispute which is considered by many to be the “Mother of All Disputes” due to the fact that it is in itself a conglomeration of numerous disputes.

Batongbacal outlined the provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) encompassing the issues, adding that recently, on March 2023, a new High Seas Treaty to protect marine biodiversity in the disputed areas was agreed upon. According to him, this agreement is highly essential, as the West Philippine Sea is part of a network forming the “Coral Triangle” of Southeast Asia which is considered as the “center” of global marine biodiversity.

The forum was organized by the class of Political Science 14 – Section WBD as part of the 50th anniversary celebration activities of the Department of Social Sciences of the College of Arts and Sciences, UP Manila.

The UP professor also bared the motivations and strategies of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) to assert its claim including its use of “cabbage operations” and other movements to deny other countries, particularly the Philippines, access to the disputed areas. To emphasize what is at stake for the Philippines, Batongbacal enumerated the various laws crafted and signed to address the situation.

“We should manage, rule, set regulations, explore, and exploit [the West Philippine Sea] for our own benefit. We should be regulating the activities on it.”

Batongbacal asserted that, “It is very clear to the world who is right, and who is not. We need to keep exercising our rights and show the world that we’re doing so. That’s the only way by which the judgment [on the West Philippine Sea] will remain current, valid, and effective.”

Martin Racza