China, our ultimate geopolitical tormentor

In the contest for geopolitical supremacy in the Asia-Pacific between America and China, the Philippines should have been more culturally, geographically, and logically aligned with China. We have much Chinese blood in our anatomy, our country is much more proximate to China, and world history has intertwined the origins of the Chinese and Philippine peoples centuries before the Americans reached our shores. China has lost many centuries of tremendous opportunities to have been a genuine friend and mentor, not as our tormentor.

But modern and contemporary history has transformed China not as a big brother to the Philippines but a bully that robs us of our national territory and openly insults our national dignity. The Chinese relentlessly and unabashedly terrorize our fishermen inside our exclusive economic zones and build artificial islands inside our waters, as declared by the International Arbitration Tribunal. China has no respect for international law and has in fact denied an international convention of which Beijing is a signatory, the UNCLOS, or the UN Convention of the Law of the Seas. China has no respect for our territorial rights.

The government of Xi Jinping has continuously besieged us with problems while turning the table around and accusing our fisherfolks of intruding into what they illegally occupy as their territory. Their globally-ignored and highly-questionable nine-dash line was even haphazardly and as an afterthought amended unilaterally and irregularly as so-called ten-dash line which is only a figment of Chinese imagination. Chin is a notorious intruder into Taiwan, into west Japan and into north India. It has hundreds of territorial disputes with other countries. And it is notorious for using superior economic and political muscles to silence small and helpless nations.

The many problems now brought to our country by relentless intrusions including suspected Chinese spies suspectedly sent to us country to run for public office and buy our lands, run illegal POGO operations, with ancillary illegal shenanigans like trafficking of women and prostitution, illegal gambling, kidnapping, torture, and cyber crimes including crypto coins illegal trading and scams. The Al Jazeera exposé about Chinese spies being sent to Australia and the Philippines can only lead to reasonable doubts that espionage is a state policy of China. And they must be doing this also in Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, New Zealand, and other US allies.

The Security Council of the UN cannot possibly come up with effective solutions to global problems because China, like Russia, is always poised to veto democratic and liberal initiatives by the US, Great Britain, and other NATO countries. China used its strong influence over Laos PDR and Cambodia as well as Myanmar so that the ASEAN could not express its collective indignation against China's unruly behavior in the West Philippine Sea. President BBM was disappointed that his call for China to abide by international law has fallen on deaf ears. Only Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam supported us. The rest were under the thumb of Xi Jinping.

By all evidence, both palpable and indubitable, China is not just a military and political bully. It is an economic, financial, cultural, and geopolitical giant that seeks to subjugate all freedom-loving nations in Asia Pacific. We should resist the hegemony of Beijing and stand up to China as an independent and democratic nation of patriotic and nationalistic people.

It is a sad thing that our close neighbor is now our worst tormentor. The reason why America is our friend is because it is the US alone that can defend us against China. The reason why America is for us is not because of love. It is because of self-interest too. The enemy of your enemy is your friend.