Congress urged to OK consolidated version of baselines bill

Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap urged lawmakers yesterday to approve immediately the consolidated version of the baselines bill, saying failure to meet the deadline imposed by the United Nations would undermine the country’s territorial claims as well as its food security.

The UN Convention on the Law of Sea (UNCLOS) has given countries until May 13 to define their stakes on the extended continental shelf (ECS) areas, many parts of which are being contested by several countries.

The pending legislative measure redefines the Philippines’ archipelagic baselines and is intended to help the country legitimize its claim on disputed areas, which are abundant in fishery and mineral resources.

“The areas covered by our UN claim, which we will lose unless Congress approves a new baselines law before the May deadline, are rich in fishery resources,” Yap said.

“Food security for Filipinos now and in the generations to come would be imperiled if we lose these areas by default,” he warned.

Yap said that enactment of the new law is part of the requirements for the filing of ECS claims.

The Philippines’ ECS areas include the Kalayaan Island Group, the Reed Bank off Palawan and Benham Rise, which are also being claimed in whole or in part by other countries like China, Brunei, and even Vietnam.

The Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, chaired by Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago, approved recently Senate Bill 2699 defining the country’s new baselines.

Yap explained that a new baselines law is necessary because the existing statute defining the current baselines does not conform to UNCLOS.

UNCLOS, an international convention ratified by more than 150 countries, establishes a comprehensive framework for the use of ocean spaces, including seabed and subsoil, as well as provide the basis for determining the limits of national jurisdiction over maritime resources.

The Philippines proposed the concept of archipelagic doctrine in the UNCLOS.

A new baselines bill will serve as the starting point for the computation of the country’s 12-mile territorial sea, 24-mile contiguous sea, 200-mile exclusive economic zone and continental shelf and extended continental shelf areas.

If Congress fails to pass a new baselines bill into law before the UN deadline, the ECS areas being claimed by the Philippines may either become part of the International Seabed Area—the so-called Common Heritage of Mankind—or be awarded to other claimants.

The DA is worried about the country losing its rights over large fishing areas.

Earlier, the National Tuna Industry Council, chaired by the DA, called for swift passage of the legislative measure.

Yap said the areas at stake have vast deposits of mineral resources like nickel and gold along with sedentary species that are used as raw material for pharmaceutical products.

The Reed Bank off Palawan alone is said to contain 3.9 million cubic feet of gas, 35 million barrels of oil and 21 million barrels of condensate, Yap said.

The Department of Energy has placed the value of these resources at $19.9 billion, $2.1 billion, and $1.2 billion, respectively.

The Philippines put its signature on the UNCLOS in 1982 and helped ratify it two years later.

The UNCLOS became effective on Nov. 16, 1994.

Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) director Malcolm Sarmiento Jr. said each state is authorized under the UN accord to explore and use the resources in its continental shelf and adjacent seabed up to 200 miles from shore.