AND SO, the dangling conversation on Le Affair West Philippine/South China Sea continues—quite timely, considering that then President Rodrigo Duterte declared every September as a special month to raise awareness on issues related to national maritime and archipelagic concerns.
Proclamation No. 316, series of 2017, designates September as Maritime and Archipelagic Nation Awareness Month. It synchronizes all maritime-related celebrations and aims to deepen public appreciation of the Philippines’ maritime and archipelagic character.
This brings to mind the current maritime flashpoint.
The South China Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean. It is bounded to the north by South China, to the west by the Indochinese Peninsula, to the east by Taiwan and northwestern Philippines, and to the south by Borneo, eastern Sumatra, and the Bangka Belitung Islands. Encompassing about 3.5 million square kilometers, it connects with the East China Sea via the Taiwan Strait, the Philippine Sea via the Luzon Strait, the Sulu Sea through the straits around Palawan, the Java Sea via the Karimata and Bangka Straits, and directly with the Gulf of Thailand.
“South China Sea” is the dominant term used in English and in most European languages. The name reflects early European interest in the area as a trade route from Europe and South Asia to China. In the 16th century, Portuguese sailors called it the “China Sea” to distinguish it from adjacent waters. Today, the International Hydrographic Organization officially recognizes the name “South China Sea.”
However, in 2012, then President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III signed Administrative Order No. 29. It directed all government agencies to use the name West Philippine Sea when referring to parts of the South China Sea within the country’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ). This includes the Luzon Sea as well as waters around, within, and adjacent to the Kalayaan Island Group and Bajo de Masinloc. The order also tasked the National Mapping and Resource Information Authority (NAMRIA) to reflect the name on official maps.
In 2013, the Philippines initiated arbitration proceedings against China over the nine-dash line, maritime feature classifications, and EEZ issues. China refused to participate.
Then, in 2016, the arbitral tribunal ruled largely in favor of the Philippines. It clarified that it would not rule on questions of sovereignty over land territory or delimit maritime boundaries between the parties. However, it concluded that China had never historically exercised exclusive control within the nine-dash line and therefore had “no legal basis” to claim “historic rights” over resources there. The tribunal also declared China’s land reclamation and artificial island-building in the Spratlys as environmentally destructive, causing “severe harm to the coral reef environment.” Furthermore, it categorized Taiping Island and other Spratly features as mere “rocks” under UNCLOS, not entitled to a 200-nautical-mile EEZ. The decision was final and binding.
China, however, dismissed the ruling as “ill-founded,” choosing instead to ignore it and pursue bilateral talks with the Philippines.
Fast forward to recent events: China declared a “National Nature Reserve” at Scarborough Shoal in the West Philippine Sea—a move widely seen as reinforcing Beijing’s sweeping territorial claims in the contested waters.
China claimed the designation was meant to safeguard the atoll’s “diversity, stability, and sustainability,” with boundaries and zoning to be determined later by its National Forestry and Grassland Administration.
In response, the Philippine National Security Council rejected the declaration, calling it a violation of UNCLOS, the 2016 arbitral award, and the 2002 Declaration on the Conduct of Parties.
Finally, the Department of Foreign Affairs announced it would lodge a formal diplomatic protest against what it described as an illegal and illegitimate act by China./PN
