by Alex Roldan
China demands that the Philippines stop unilateral actions that damage China’s sovereignty and interests. The Chinese government is particular about the Philippines’ claim and activity in areas of the Spratly’s group of islands which they claim are part of their territory.
Islands in the Spratlys are contested by several nations – Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, China and Taiwan, too, an additional claimant by virtue of their claim as the historical rulers of mainland China.
Our position is that the Spratlys are much nearer to our shores than China. In fact our claim to some of the islands conforms with the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea that established the legal regimes for different maritime zones under sovereignty and sovereign rights of coastal states where China is a signatory. However, despite dubious and groundless basis of their claims, China insists that their territory stretches to about 70% of the South China whose boundaries they themselves have drawn unilaterally!
Clearly, China has no right to treat the Philippines this way. The Philippines has a diplomatic line where they can lodge their complaint, but by shortcutting it and announcing it publicly tramples on our pride as a nation!
If China respects our sovereignty, why can’t they talk to us as equal sovereign nations? If they are serious about a joint exploration of whatever wealth lies buried in the bowels of these islands, why can’t they use the diplomatic line to the Philippines and other countries that have similar claims in the same manner instead of acting like a bully simply because they have destructive capability against those who will not heed their demand!
I am sad to see the reaction of our leaders. Their position on this is issue is obscure and confusing that only gives the impression of our helplessness against the bullying of a stronger nation.
Our leaders should instead face this squarely and respond in a manner that the international community understands! That the Filipinos have pride as a nation and cannot accept such discriminatory act. Insisting on the mutual defense treaty with the US in case we are attacked by hostile countries is simply gobbledygook. It only exposes our weakness – that we do not know how to respond to such a threat. Frankly speaking, we cannot rely on the US in case a conflict erupts between China and the Philippines. Everybody knows the US have more interests in the China market than we do.
Though I don’t agree with the proposal to boycott China products as it will hurt the Philippines more than they, we need to find a leverage to prevent China from bullying us. One is to bring this matter to the international community. Clearly, China does not fear the Philippines militarily and at a certain level economically for now, that’s a fact. Bringing the issue to the international level would make China think twice. The reaction of the international community is one thing that China cannot afford to dismiss. Second, is for the Philippines to undertake secret diplomacy with nations that have similar claims in the Spratlys – to insist for equal benefits of whatever is in these places. Meaning, we need to strengthen our alliances with nations whose interests are also being threatened by China. Just like in any business strategy to fight against a fierce competitor, the best way is to consolidate the strength of the smaller companies through alliances.
Finally our leaders’ should use all our inherent advantages to make China respect us as a nation. Remember, China’s economy relies heavily on a lot of imported raw materials and manpower. To continue their economic expansion, certainly they need a lot of Filipino manpower in their country. Strengthening the skills level of OFWs and some policy changes would make us indispensable to China’s development goals.
Remember the mishandled hostage crisis that resulted in the death of Hong Kong tourists in Manila? Hong Kong castigated the Philippines and threatened to repatriate OFW only to realize their economy would suffer most if they made good their threat. To salvage the situation, Hong Kong authorities changed their statement, that although they were frustrated by the outcome of the crisis, it is not right to punish the OFWs for the failure of Philippine authorities.
Furthermore, China needs more minerals and agricultural products for their industries which the Philippines has in abundance, and they are salivating to get hold of these resources. The country should have a clear policy, particularly on the extraction of natural minerals. A law that prohibits the export of raw minerals would force other countries, including China, to put-up processing plants in the country – thus strengthening our economy and our control over the mineral product supply chain that China badly needs. This will make our position stronger.
Data show that the Philippines has few benefits from China’s investments and product exports. We should not fear that Chinese investment would pull out of the country – that is negotiating from a weak position. We have to remember that our economy is not dependent on China. China needs us now more than ever to sustain their economic growth, and their recent posture against us to me, is certainly a ploy hoping that the Philippines, out of fear, would try to ease the situation by giving the Chinese the easy way to achieve their real intention–our resources.
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