House passes Maritime Zones bill to clarify, define Philippine waters
MANILA, Philippines — In a bid to clarify the maritime zones under the Philippines' jurisdiction, the House of Representatives passed on final reading a measure that delineates the country's exclusive and sovereign rights over parts of the waters surrounding the archipelago.
With 284 affirmative votes, the lower chamber of Congress greenlighted House Bill No. 7819, which consolidates four bills that seek to enact a Maritime Zones Law.
Rep. Rachel Arenas (Pangasinan)—House foreign affairs committee chairperson and bill sponsor—highlighted the necessity of harmonizing domestic laws on maritime territory with the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
“This bill harmonizes our domestic legislations with the international regime for the oceans, further clarifying the nature and status of the waters connecting the various islands of the Philippines and the adjacent seas of the archipelago,” Arenas stated in the bill’s explanatory note.
Arguing that a declaration of “what is ours” is necessary to defend and protect the country’s maritime zones, Arenas said: “We cannot strengthen our position in the West Philippine Sea
and negotiate with our neighbors if our maritime boundaries are not recognized by the community of nations. We cannot secure the future of the Filipino people if we will not enact a Maritime Zones Law.”
HB 7819 considers the country’s maritime zones to be the following: internal waters, archipelagic waters, territorial sea, contiguous zone, exclusive economic zone and continental shelf.
The proposed measure also includes a provision that only allows foreign vessels and aircraft of States that comply with UNCLOS and international laws ‘can fully enjoy navigational and other rights in Philippine maritime zones.”
UNCLOS is the international regime for the oceans that “recognizes the establishment of various maritime zones and jurisdiction of coastal states, including its own over which sovereignty and appurtenant sovereign rights can be exercised.”
The international convention, which has been hailed as “the constitution of the ocean,” has been invoked by the Philippine government in its previous assertions of jurisdiction over parts of the West Philippine Sea, including features of Benham Rise.
President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. has said that the government will continue to "urge all to abide by the 1982 UNCLOS" and ensure that the South China Sea "does not become a nexus for armed conflict."
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