BY NOW, the whole world must know that on the dispute over the West Philippine Sea (WPS) between the Philippines and China, the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) has decided in our favor.
Hurrah! First, with paramount reason, let us celebrate and savor sweet victory. Then let us thank the veritable and competent legal and diplomatic teams for pleading our case successfully before the PCA (Francis Jardeleza, former solicitor general, now, deservingly, a Supreme Court justice; past solicitor general Florin Hilbay; past foreign secretary Albert del Rosario; our assisting international legal luminaries—e.g., Lawrence H. Martin from the Foley Hoag LLP; Philippe Sands QC of Matrix Chambers, London; Bernard H. Oxman of University of Miami School of Law).
China arrogantly snubbed our case before the PCA, and instead addressed it with anger, illogic, sophistry and antiquated gunboat diplomacy to support its claim. It lost its “case” by default—not only in the PCA but also in the community of nations.
In all aspects, this dispute is a dispute of size: territory, population, economy, armed forces, military hardware. Ranged against China, the Philippines would be a young David armed with the plaything of a slingshot facing the giant Goliath. China could gobble us up easily. But our country’s history, culture and native or Christian civilization would make subjugation by China out of this world, absolutely repulsive and unacceptable.
For China, the rule is “might is right.” But the Philippines, helpless under the circumstances, would prefer “right is might”—a position it has been blessed with the celebrated, brand-new decision of the PCA.
China, not surprisingly, rejects, even scoffs at the decision. But, according to John Kirby, US state department spokesperson, “the surprisingly strong and sweeping ruling by a UN-backed tribunal in The Hague, provided a powerful diplomatic ammunition to the Philippines…”—a statement that is itself a powerful one.
The decision is there for the Philippines to adopt as a newfound, powerful approach. Our country now possesses a fresh, diplomatic means to assert that “right is might” in international relations. In dealing with China, we may be helpless militarily, but we now have a very potent weapon to succeed diplomatically.
To marshal diplomatic support, we can go back to the Asean, though its last conference seemed to have ended in disarray, if not in a debacle; then we can go to the European Union, and to all other countries (the United States, Australia and Japan which are presumptively sympathetic to and supportive of our cause).
The desired ultimate goal is to reverse the now-proscribed state of affairs in the disputed WPS. China, after all is the heir to a civilization—one of the oldest—known for the rule of reason, fairness, amity and goodwill in dealing with neighbors.
But even with a newfound diplomatic weapon, we cannot rest. As we employ diplomacy, we must at the same time pursue in earnest and with greater speed the long-overdue modernization of our defensive (never offensive) capabilities in the air and in the seas.
The Philippines, being an archipelago par excellence, shamefully, has no air force, to rule its skies and no navy to rule its seas, even if for adequate, defensive and protective purposes only.
For a start, we should equip our Coast Guard to enable it to protect more effectively Filipino fishermen in the disputed seas.
—JESUS L. GRAGEDA, retired judge, Panabo City, Davao del Norte