PHL urges China to withdraw floating Scarborough structure

THE Philippines called on China to withdraw the “illegal” floating platform and other structures placed in the Bajo de Masinloc (Scarborough Shoal), the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said on Wednesday, asserting the installations violate Philippine sovereignty and international law.

In a livestreamed press briefing, DFA Deputy Assistant Secretary Rogelio Villanueva, Jr. said the Philippines maintains “indivisible, incontrovertible, and longstanding sovereignty” over Scarborough Shoal, located just 119.65 nautical miles off Zambales.

Mr. Villanueva, who is also the spokesperson for maritime affairs, stressed that only the Philippines has the authority to construct or place structures and conduct activities in the shoal.

“The continued presence of the semi-permanent floating platform without consent or authorization is not only a violation of the sovereignty and jurisdiction of the Philippines,” he said, noting it is also inconsistent with international law, particularly the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea or UNCLOS and the 2016 award in the South China Sea arbitration.

Mr. Villanueva said that the presence of the structures also contradicts commitments under the 2002 Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea.

“We urged China to withdraw and remove the platform and structures from Bajo de Masinloc, cease similar actions that violate Philippine sovereignty and sovereign rights in and within the vicinity of Bajo de Masinloc,” Mr. Villanueva said, insisting that China must comply with its obligations under international law.

The National Task Force for the West Philippine Sea (NTF-WPS) earlier confirmed the DFA has taken diplomatic action, including the issuance of demarches and a diplomatic protest, against China after aerial monitoring confirmed the presence of a floating structure with antenna within Scarborough Shoal. It has also observed individuals on board.

The Chinese Embassy to the Philippines did not immediately respond to a Viber message seeking comment.

PLATFORM AND OTHER FLOATING OBJECTS
Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) spokesperson for the WPS Jay Tristan Tarriela said the PCG suspects two Chinese research vessels spotted on May 21 deployed the structure, which measures 30 square meters.

In a May 30 maritime domain awareness (MDA) flight, six Chinese nationals were spotted on top of the platform while a Chinese rubber boat was seen installing an antenna on a reef near the mouth of the shoal.

“And in this particular MDA flight, we were not just harassed by a PLA (People’s Liberation Army) Navy helicopter,” he said. “The Chinese government decided to send a fighter jet to harass and bully the Philippine Coast Guard aircraft while we are conducting this routine MDA flight,” Mr. Tarriela said.

In a separate monitoring operation on May 31, Mr. Tarriela said authorities observed four new developments, including an unidentified floating object resembling a container drum, a possible antenna structure in the southern part of the opening, the movement of a movable platform from the entrance of the shoal, and an additional floating buoy in its northern part.

REMINISCENT OF MISCHIEF REEF
The Philippine officials refused to speculate on the platform’s purpose or whether they view its presence as an escalation by China, which last year announced the creation of a national nature reserve at the shoal.

Jay L. Batongbacal, a professor at the University of the Philippines and a maritime law expert, said the photos were reminiscent of Mischief Reef, one of seven artificial islands that China has built in the South China Sea. It is equipped with a runway, radar systems, and surface-to-air missiles. 

“They started with the base, then small huts that kept getting upgraded,” Mr. Batongbacal said, adding that he saw the structure as part of China’s “actions to incrementally change the facts on the ground.”

CODE OF CONDUCT EFFORTS
Relations between Manila and Beijing have deteriorated amid repeated maritime confrontations in disputed areas of the South China Sea, a conduit for $3 trillion in annual global trade, which China claims almost in its entirety.

The Scarborough Shoal is located close to major shipping lanes and is coveted for its fish stocks and a turquoise lagoon that provides a haven for vessels during storms. China seized de facto control in 2012.

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations is negotiating with China on a long-awaited Code of Conduct for the South China Sea but an agreement remains elusive.

Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Ma. Theresa P. Lazaro told a Nikkei forum in Tokyo on Wednesday it would be better not to have a code of conduct than to have a “bad” one.

She said efforts to conclude a pact should be based on the UNCLOS and other agreed principles. — Pexcel John Bacon and Reuters