Senate to tackle resolution raising Arbitral Tribunal victory to UN after SONA: Zubiri
The Senate will take up a resolution that seeks to elevate the country’s victory in the Arbitral Tribunal on the West Philippine Sea (WPS) to the United Nations (UN) a day after President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. delivers his second State of the Nation Address (SONA), Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri said Sunday.
Senator Risa Hontiveros earlier filed Senate Resolution 659, which urges the national government to sponsor a resolution before the UN General Assembly that will tell China to stop harassing Filipino vessels in the WPS.
In an interview with dzBB, Zubiri said: “By Monday (July 24), we will resume sessions, so by Tuesday, we will debate on that. I am sure we will get the majority to vote in favor of this resolution that will take it back to up to The Hague as an opposition to what is happening right now.”
“We will show in our protests all these pictures, we will present it back to the United Nations so that we can get a new ruling on China’s daily intrusions and illegal incursions in our territory,” he added.
In 2016, the Arbitral Tribunal at The Hague invalidated China's claims that it owns the South China Sea based on historical records. China does not recognize this ruling.
Zubiri said he agrees with Hontiveros' proposal that the government should file a protest at The Hague that states that the country’s exclusive economic zone should be respected
“You know, I’ll show you a map. Look at how many Chinese ships are surrounding Recto Bank. It is only 80 nautical miles from Mainland China. China is 450 nautical miles. They are too far. Their distance from the Reed Bank and Spratlys is even further which is 500 nautical miles while Ayungin Shoal is only 125 nautical miles,” Zubiri said.
“For the life of me, I do not understand how they can claim those islands as theirs and say that we don’t own them. Those areas are close to our country and far from theirs,” he said.
“The 16 European Union countries say that they respect the arbitration ruling and believe that the Philippines owns those islands. And China also released a statement that America (is) involving itself with the country’s territorial claims,” he said.
Citing an unreleased survey in Pulse Asia where Zubiri asked if people think the country should strengthen its military ties with the US, 75 percent said they were in favor while 14 percent said they were against.
Of this percentage, 86 percent were in favor in the National Capital Region, 69 percent in Balance Luzon, 83 percent in Visayas, and 76 percent in Mindanao.
“This means that our citizens are angry at China. If they weren’t, then there should be a smaller percentage that was in favor…they are sick and tired of China entering our territory, especially with the incursions in the Reed Bank which is so close to El Nido in Coron,” Zubiri said. Jaspearl Tan/DMS
