This is not another anti-American rant nor a pro-China piece. As public knowledge, I pursued higher education in the US and the United Kingdom. Unlike my other siblings, I returned to the motherland because I do not see myself living in a foreign country. I am the only one in my family who elected to stay in the Philippines for good. I also do not have dual citizenship.
I would have comparatively led a more comfortable life had I been an American citizen. The Philippines, however, is the only country that I will love and be loyal to until my last breath.
Therefore, I detest another nation-state – China or America – lording it over us. We are not cannon fodders for the proxy war of global superpowers. As embodied in the Preamble of our Constitution, every Filipino must continue to promote the common good and adhere to the democratic principles of truth, justice, freedom, equality and peace.
Illegal presence
Like most Filipinos, I am appalled by China’s record of unlawful activities in the West Philippines Sea. From the time it took away our Panganiban (Mischief) Reef in 1995 and the Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal in 2012, I have criticized China’s hostile and aggressive policy in the Spratly archipelago. The STAR reported in July that from 2016 to 2021, our government filed 260 diplomatic protests against the illegal actions of Chinese vessels. The Department of Foreign Affairs said the Marcos administration has filed 67 and 30 notes verbales in 2022 and 2023, respectively.
I am glad that President Marcos has dismissed China’s call to remove the BRP Sierra Madre from the Ayungin (Second Thomas) Shoal, which has served as a Philippine military outpost since 1999. The disputed atoll falls under our exclusive economic zone (EZZ). Indeed, the old Philippine Navy ship is a testament to our country’s sovereign rights over Ayungin.
On the other hand, the latest water cannon incident on our Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) in Ayungin reminds me of the aftermath of the Panatag stand-off during the Aguino administration. Sino-Philippine relations was at its lowest at that point. As a consequence, China has attacked Philippine vessels with high-powered water cannon or laser beams in the contested islands.
In April 2012, our Navy warship BRP Gregorio del Pilar (a decommissioned American ship that the Aquino government bought for P450 million) attempted to apprehend Chinese fishermen (Inquirer). Aboard eight fishing boats, the fishermen illegally harvested corals, giant clams and live sharks. As defined by Article 8 of the 1958 Convention on the High Seas, the term “warship” means a ship belonging to the naval forces of a State and bearing the external marks distinguishing warships of its nationality, under the command of an officer duly commissioned by the government and whose name appears in the Navy List, and manned by a crew who are under regular naval discipline. In international law, sending a warship in a disputed maritime zone can be construed as a prelude to naval warfare.
In retaliation, China sent two surveillance ships that blocked the arrest of their compatriots. Three months later, Aquino ordered a PCG patrol vessel and a Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources survey ship to leave Panatag due to an approaching typhoon. From what I know, the US promised and assured the Aquino government that if the Philippines withdraws from the disputed shoal, the Chinese would do the same. The opposite happened. That is how we lost Panatag to China. And similar to the Panganiban Reef case, America did not help the Philippines reclaim Panatag.
Relations gone sour
I cannot help but draw a parallelism between the situation during the time of Aquino and now. The water cannon incident could only mean one thing: the Philippine relations with the Asian hegemon has gone further south. I am afraid that our bilateral friendship, which reached a high point during the Duterte administration, might become a thing of the past.
The reason for China’s antagonism is quite obvious. Let me clarify that I am not condoning its continued violations of the 2016 Arbitral Tribunal ruling and international maritime laws. However, it is crucial for us to know where the belligerence stems from. The decision of the Philippines to give America more access to local military bases, three of which are strategically proximate to the Taiwan Strait, is bad news to China. This country will not sit still while the armed force of its ‘perceived enemy’ is awarded additional Enhanced Defense Economic Agreement (EDCA) locations to exploit militarily.
I have also been in touch with several newsmen from China. They felt betrayed after the Philippines and America jointly announced the four new EDCA sites in April. From their collective perspectives, the US will use our bases to launch offensives against China if an armed conflict ensues between China, and what it considers a renegade province, Taiwan. According to these journalists, the prevailing narrative in their local media outlets was that the Philippines turned its back on their country. I reckon that China’s top leaders and policymakers also think along these lines.
Moreover, I have read commentaries from American opinion-makers, including those from the Defense Department, that when a China-Taiwan war breaks out, the US will marshal its prepositioned troops in the Philippines to aid Taiwan. Given the Ayungin incident, I am again unsurprised that America – apart from the requisite message of support to the Philippines and condemnation of China – has not extended any military assistance to us. It is all talk, zero action. After all, America has never recognized our claims to the Spratly Islands. US defense officials continue to parrot the official position of non-interference in disputed territories. Likewise, there is no explicit provision in the 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT) that cover the maritime features of the West Philippine Sea. To trigger the MDT, there must be an armed attack to the metropolitan territory, armed forces and public vessels or aircraft of the Philippines (Article 5).
For now, the only way to preserve the Sino-Philippine friendship is to continue holding a frank and no-holds-barred dialogue on how to de-escalate tension and resolve conflicts in the West Philippine Sea and the Indo-Pacific region without prejudice to the Philippine national interest.