A POINT OF AWARENESS – Preciosa S. Soliven (The Philippine Star)
December 6, 2018
Part I
During the launching of his eBook “The South China Sea Dispute: Philippine Sovereign Rights and Jurisdiction in the West Philippine Sea” last May 4, 2017, Justice Antonio Carpio hailed DFA Sec. Albert del Rosario as a true Filipino patriot, who filed the landmark arbitration case against China together with our foreign service officials who never fail to advance, promote and protect our national interest. He also thanked the Supreme Court for allowing him to take leave, en banc to travel to Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei, the neighboring countries affected by the disputes the South China Sea.
Last Nov. 24, as keynote speaker of the first general assembly of Akademyang Filipino, an organization whose members include National Artists, National Scientists and the country’s Ramon Magsaysay awardees Law of the Sea advocates stressed, “We all have one common purpose – to DEFEND, PROTECT and PRESERVE Philippine maritime entitlement in the West Philippine Sea.”
Three fold purpose of the e-book
First, the eBook is intended to inform the Filipino people about the vast maritime areas and rich natural resources that they own in the West Philippine Sea under international law. Once the Filipino people realize that these maritime areas and resources belong to them and to future generations of Filipinos, as affirmed with finality by a United Nations Convention on the Laws of the Sea (UNCLOS) arbitral tribunal, then the Filipino people will never allow any government administration, any government agency, or any government official to give away or compromise these maritime areas or resources in favor of a foreign state in violation of the Constitution.
Second, this eBook is intended to inform other coastal states of the world that it is in their national interest to help the Philippines protect Philippine maritime entitlements. That is why Vietnamese, Indonesian, Japanese and Spanish versions of this eBook has been released. For if China can grab for itself the maritime entitlements of the Philippines in violation of international law, then other coastal states may also lose their maritime entitlements to their more powerful neighboring states. This would end the rule of law in the oceans and seas of our planet.
Third, this eBook is intended to convince the Chinese people that the nine-dash line has no legal or historical basis. That is why a Mandarin version of this eBook has been released.