PH launches microsite on 2016 SCS arbitral award

THE PHILIPPINE microsite that will serve as a central resource for official information and the country’s position on the 2016 Arbitration Award.

The DFA said the website is a partial fulfillment of its commitment to promote a better understanding of the decision as a Philippine contribution to the peaceful settlement of disputes through international law.

Manila marks on July 12 the seventh anniversary of the landmark decision, which upheld the country’s sovereign rights and jurisdiction in its exclusive economic zone in the South China Sea.

In a statement, Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo said the ruling is a significant contribution to international law and the interpretation and application of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

“The Award conclusively settled the issue of historic rights and maritime entitlements in the South China Sea,” he said. “Claims to historic rights, or other sovereign rights or jurisdiction beyond the geographic and substantive limits of UNCLOS-provided maritime entitlements are without legal effect.”

Last year, Manalo reaffirmed that the 2016 award serves as one of the "twin anchors" of Manila’s policy and actions over the West Philippine Sea.

The microsite, managed by the DFA Foreign Service Institute, will provide links to resources, including the material submitted to the Tribunal and made available by the Permanent Court of Arbitration, a collection of DFA statements on the South China Sea Arbitration, starting with the statement made by the late Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario on January 22, 2013, when he announced the decision to pursue the “UNCLOS Arbitral Proceedings against China to achieve a peaceful and durable solution to the dispute in the West Philippine Sea.”

The site also features an explainer on the legal and geographic scope of the West Philippine Sea.

“We understand that the issue is complex and may be confusing, so this is an attempt to clear some of the fog. It is a work-in-progress site, but I feel it is an important start to gaining a better understanding of the complex issues faced by the Philippines in the South China Sea and the West Philippine Sea,” DFA Assistant Secretary Maria Angela Ponce said.

The DFA prepared and secured the materials through the support of the Presidential Communications Office and the National Mapping and Resource Information Authority.)Joyce Ann L. Rocamora)