Atin Ito First Filipino Community Newspaper in Ontario
SEN. Ana Theresia “Risa” Hontiveros said on Friday that by ignoring the growing consensus coalescing around the Philippine victory in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) arbitral ruling, the Chinese government further isolates itself from the international community.
“The world has spoken: the territorial claims embodied in the so-called ‘9-dash line’ have no basis in history or international law. Despite the name, the South China Sea is not Chinese, and the Chinese government has no special authority therein, other than as provided for in the UNCLOS (United Nations Convention for the Law of the Sea),” said Hontiveros on the statement of the Chinese Embassy in Manila regarding the landmark arbitral ruling that was issued on 2016.
The lady senator said that China’s call for the rest of the world to stay out of the territorial dispute in the West Philippine Sea and respect its “territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests” is the height of hypocrisy, as the Chinese government itself all too willingly violates the sovereignty, rights, and interests of other claimant countries when it thinks it can get away with it.
As to the alleged “mastermind” of the arbitration case, Hontiveros strongly urged the Chinese Embassy to at least show some basic courtesy to the Philippines, their host country, before deciding to release inflammatory statements on a day the Filipino people are celebrating a great victory.
“This is an affront to the Filipinos who stood up for ourselves, and had the heart, courage, and fighting spirit to take China to court,” she said.
Hontiveros stressed that if China keeps ignoring the arbitral ruling, the Marcos administration should seriously consider reviewing our national policy toward China. — Javier Joe Ismael
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