New arrangement

The big news over the weekend was the deal that China and the Philippines have reached over a hotly contested shoal in the South China Sea.

I look at this with cautious optimism. It’s certainly a positive step to hopefully end confrontations at Ayungin Shoal, the site of clashes between Chinese and Philippine ships in recent months.

Last month, as we all know, a Filipino sailor lost a thumb when Chinese coast guards “with knives, sticks and an axe” foiled a Philippine Navy attempt to resupply its troops (Agence France-Presse, July 21, 2024).

For context, the Philippines occupies Second Thomas Shoal or Ayungin but China also claims it. As such, during re-supply missions, clashes between troops of the two countries have erupted.

The deal was reached on Sunday, said the Associated Press’ Jim Gomez in a separate report. This followed a series of meetings between Philippine and Chinese diplomats in Manila and exchanges of diplomatic notes, he said.

The bottomline was to have a mutually acceptable arrangement at the shoal without conceding either side’s territorial claims.

Peace over war

As I said, I am cautiously optimistic over this agreement.

Peace, after all, is always the better choice over conflict and any peace-loving individual or citizen would surely agree.

For humanitarian reasons, for the sake of Filipino troops whose lives are put on the line with every re-supply mission, de-escalating conflict in the disputed territories is certainly a welcome development in these uncertain times.

Filipino tycoons have long been quietly hoping for the geopolitical tensions to cool down as it not only puts Filipino fishermen and our Navy and Coast Guard personnel in danger, but it has also been sending jitters to potential investors.

Trade ties between the Philippines and China have also been affected, with some Filipino entrepreneurs encountering problems with their suppliers from China. Philippine exports to China are likewise facing challenges as China is now quietly sourcing from Vietnam and Cambodia, sources have told me.

Calmer minds should prevail, George Barcelon, past president of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry, also said a few weeks back.

No less than the Federation of Filipino-Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry Inc. has also said that a peaceful resolution must prevail so that tensions will de-escalate.

Vigilance

That said, the Philippines must remain careful and vigilant in dealing with China in light of this new arrangement.

China said that “the two sides agreed to jointly manage maritime differences and work for de-escalation in the South China Sea.”

However, as I write this, our Department of Foreign Affairs has already found inaccuracies in the statement of China’s foreign minister spokesperson Lin Jian, who said that “China is willing to allow (resupply missions) in a humanitarian spirit if the Philippines informs China in advance and after on-site verification is conducted. China will monitor the entire resupply process.”

The DFA said this is inaccurate. Nonetheless, the DFA said that in the desire to de-escalate the situation and to manage differences in a peaceful manner, “the agreement was done in good faith and that the Philippines is ready to implement it.”

“We urge China to do the same,” the DFA also said.

Against this backdrop, I hope that the new agreement indeed will not come at the expense of the Philippines’ position regarding the disputed territory. 
We will wait and see what happens next.

Media wish list

By the time this piece comes out, the State of the Nation Address is done and delivered.

But it is always a good time to reiterate the wish list of Filipino journalists – decriminalize libel, pass the Freedom of Information law and end red-tagging.

This is what the convenors of the 1st Philippine Media Safety Summit said as they called on Marcos to take concrete steps to support a critical press, which he said best serves the national interest.

“The President himself said it in April: ‘The principal role of the press is not to applaud those who govern, but you hold us accountable, without holding back in giving praise to those who deserve it. Along with that stance is our collective goal of protecting the welfare and lives of journalists’,” the convenors said in a statement.

“Now is the time for Mr. Marcos to keep his promise and include efforts to ensure a ‘truly free and safe environment for all journalists’ in his SONA legislative priority,” the group added.

The convenors likewise seek for the President to make a clear stance to end the practice of red-tagging, which has been used to target journalists.

“Red-tagging, vilification, labelling and guilt by association threaten a person’s right to life, liberty or security, which may justify the issuance of a writ of amparo,” the High Court has said.

The group, in its statement, also pushed for the removal of a provision in the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2022 that includes journalists as possible witnesses in drug cases.

As for the FOI, the group said a legislated FOI would promote transparency in government transactions, regardless of whoever sits in Malacañang.

Signatories of the statement include the following media organizations: Center for Community Journalism and Development, College of Mass Communications-UP Diliman, Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines, MindaNews, National Union of Journalists of the Philippines Peace, Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism and the Philippine Press Institute.

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Email: [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @eyesgonzales. Column archives at EyesWideOpen on FB.