Atty. Joey D. Lina
Former Senator
By Atty. Joey D. Lina
Former Senator
Many find it weird why focus was on an uncontested area instead of the West Philippine Sea where Filipinos are increasingly frustrated over the seemingly inadequate response of the Philippines to China’s relentless intrusions into our exclusive economic zone.
But the attention drawn last week to the Philippine Rise, formerly called Benham Rise, when President Duterte led the send-off of Filipino scientists to do a six-month research in the area has undoubtedly become a source of pride and great hope that our country would indeed never give up on what is rightfully ours.
“Tingin ko napadala naman niya ang mensahe niya sa buong daigdig na tanging Pilipino lamang ang makikinabang sa Philippine Rise (I think he sent the message to the whole world that only Filipinos would benefit from Philippine Rise),” presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said.
The Philippine Rise stirred public awareness last year when Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana disclosed that Chinese survey ships had a prolonged stay in the area, igniting suspicions the ships were there not only for “innocent passage” as claimed by Chinese authorities.
The Philippine Navy then deployed its warship BRP Ramon Alcaraz to form part of intensified patrols over the 13-million-hectare undersea region rich in biodiversity, minerals, and gas deposits off eastern Luzon. Many fear that our exclusive sovereign rights over the area – recognized in April 2012 by the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea as part of the continental shelf of the Philippines – might suffer the same fate as that of other areas in our EEZ. The recent send-off somehow allays that fear.
“Today we send off our team of talented and competent Filipino scientists who will undertake the coordinated national marine scientific research in the waters above the Philippine Rise,” President Duterte said at the May 15 ceremonial send-off onboard the BRP Davao del Sur ship anchored at Casiguran Bay off Aurora province.
Stressing that the efforts of the scientists are “vital to the protection and management of Philippine Rise and its vast resources,” the President also signed a proclamation formally declaring a marine reserve in the area, considering that the Philippines has been “entrusted with the responsibility to protect it from abuse and misuse.”
“Last year I issued Executive Order No. 25 which renamed the erstwhile Benham Rise to the Philippine Rise. Today I am issuing a presidential proclamation formally declaring parts of this undersea feature as a marine reserve,” President Duterte announced.
Around 50,000 hectares in the Philippine Rise has been designated a “strict protection zone closed to any human activity except for scientific research.” The proclamation also designated 300,000 hectares as “special fisheries management area” where overfishing and illegal fishing is not allowed.
The focus on Philippine Rise comes amid deepening frustration of many Filipinos that our country is “slowly losing territory by default, timidity, or even cowardice” amid a seemingly defeatist stance in the face of China’s perceived intentions to gobble up areas not only in the West Philippine Sea but also in the Pacific Ocean side.
While Chinese officials say they “fully respect” our rights over Philippine Rise, former National Security Adviser Roilo Golez warned Filipinos to be wary. “They always say that. They also said that in the case of Mischief Reef but look at what they did. Before, they were almost non-existent in the West Philippine Sea. Now they’re all over. That is their opening line. We must be careful on what they say because what they say may be different what they plan to do.”
In one of the gatherings of the Clean Forum at the Manila Hotel, Golez added: “We should develop defense capability, we should maximize diplomacy, we should be always aware that China is claiming 90 percent of our West Philippine Sea, and now they’re making their presence felt in Benham Rise. We should always be careful and cautious.”
China’s incursions into our EEZ had indeed been relentless. In 1987, it erected a weather station on Fiery Cross Reef ostensibly “to help UNESCO’s global oceanic survey,” only to transform it into a 250-hectare military base. China then snatched Mischief Reef in 1995 on the pretext of building a shelter for fishermen caught in storms at sea. China was also able to seize Panatag Shoal in 2012 when it did not honor an agreement to withdraw after a standoff.
All Filipinos especially our leaders owe it to future generations to preserve our patrimony. Our sense of patriotism impels us to do all we can to show the world that ours is a self-respecting country. If a tiny nation like Taiwan is able to face up to giant China all these years, or if Israel can stand its ground despite being surrounded by its enemies, and if the Vietnamese can fiercely oppose China when it placed a controversial oil rig in waters belonging to Vietnam’s EEZ, so can we.
Indeed, our glorious past – with our heroes resisting foreign invaders who trampled upon our sacred shores – is a shining testament to the courage and tenacity of Filipinos to defend and protect what is rightfully ours.
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