SILENCE IS NOT ALWAYS THE BEST ANSWER: CHINESE ATTACKS IN WEST PH SEA

I still remember the televised debate of the candidates for the presidency back in 2016 and the iconic line of MR. Rodrigo Duterte, our President now, when was asked by a fisherman named Carlo Montehermozo regarding the West Philippine Sea. Back then, everyone was amazed at what President Duterte answered to his question, he said that he will ride a jet ski with our Philippine Flag and will plant it at the airport of China. It is bravery, right? Who would not think of admiring this kind of President that is brave enough to face the long-time conflict and issue about the West Philippine Sea? It gives us hope. However, it is indeed that promises are meant to be broken, 5 years after winning voting, our President seems to swerve into the opposite lane.

President Duterte on the evening of May 10, 2021, gave a speech to the public and one of the subjects that were tackled is the issue of the West Philippine Sea and the Jet Ski thing. Duterte said that what he stated 5 years ago about riding the Jet Ski was a joke and called it “bravado”. Bravado is a bold manner or a show of boldness intended to impress. He also added that anyone who believed what he said during the campaign debate was “stupid”. It seems like this whole country is a huge theatrical stage for the President and we the Filipinos are his audiences on his acting performances.

The West Philippine Sea is one of the richest in the region in terms of; fishing grounds and natural resources such as oil or gas. Sadly, it was already controlled and seized by China even the truth is that the Philippines have sovereign rights to it. West Philippine Sea is located to our exclusive economic zone (EEZ); we won the arbitration case in the year 2016 and it was legally clarified under the 1982 United Nation Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). However, China refused to accept this 2016 ruling of the United Nation. On May 3, 2021, President Duterte points out that the Philippines' arbitral victory and ruling under the UNCLOS is just a piece of paper and that paper is nothing. He also added that if ever someone gave that paper to him, he will throw it into the wastebasket.

Recently, the tension in the West Philippine Sea heightens several incidents of attacks and invasions of Chinese people and vessels were reported. The task force says that they received numerous reports from the Philippine Coast Guards that hundreds of Chinese vessels that were believed to be a Chinese maritime militia were spotted within the Philippine exclusive economic zone. Another incident of attacks was last April 18, 2021, when the ABS-CBN news team was chased by the Chinese ships armed with heavy weapons. The reporter of the said media outlet, Chiara Zambrano said that they were at Ayungin Shoal when covering news on the impact of China’s action on Filipino fishermen and when the news team was about to leave, two small and faster ships with two mounted missiles are still chasing them. These kinds of movements from China can be considered a threat to us and shouldn’t be tolerated by our government.

Different institutions and groups are calling out the government to take actions in concern to the tension including diplomatic protest and filing a resolution but the government appears to turn a blind eye and zips their mouth. Retired Supreme Court Justice Antonio Carpio said that the silence of our President towards the issue may give a wrong signal to China. Our President should address it immediately to inform China that we are still consistent with our rights in the West Philippine Sea. As a response to this concern, President Duterte often says that nothing he could do about it and pushing our rights may cause war with China. He is like a round character in a play where at first he can be described as a man who has a strong and brave personality but in the end, makes turns and became like a scaredy-cat.

With these continuing invasions of China in the West Philippine Sea, the Philippine government should make a more serious manner of assuring the public that our country has a plan of physically bringing back this resource rich-water to us. “China will listen only to the leader of the nation. If the President is silent, then China will continue," said Antonio Carpio. It is not enough that our fellow Filipinos are the only ones who are crying out for action on the issue, our President should speak up too against China because he has more power to make a solution to it. The administration should not set aside this issue and should enlighten their minds towards the effect to tens of thousands of Filipinos fishers who may lose their livelihood and food resources because of this Chinese invasion of the West Philippine Sea.