The Philippines has filed a diplomatic protest against China's unilateral imposition of a fishing ban in South China Sea which covers parts of the West Philippine Sea.
Through the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), the Philippines conveyed its protest to the three-and-a-half month fishing moratorium in the disputed waters.
The moratorium covers areas in the West Philippine Sea over "which the Philippines has sovereignty, sovereign rights, and jurisdiction," the DFA stressed.
The fishing ban is expected to last until Aug.16, 2022.
In its diplomatic note, the Philippines stressed that "Paragraph 716 of the final and binding Award on the South China Sea Arbitration rendered on 12 July 2016 states that China, by promulgating its moratorium on fishing in the South China Sea without exception for areas of the South China Sea falling within the exclusive economic zone of the Philippines and without limiting the moratorium to Chinese flagged vessels, breached Article 56 of the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) with respect to the Philippines’ sovereign rights over the living resources of its exclusive economic zone.”
It also reiterated its continuing protest of China’s annual practice of declaring a fishing ban over areas that extend far beyond China’s legitimate maritime entitlements under the 1982 UNCLOS.
"The declaration of a moratorium on fishing that extends to the West Philippine Sea has no basis in law, and undermines the mutual trust, confidence, and respect that should underpin bilateral relations, as affirmed most recently by President Rodrigo R. Duterte and President Xi Jinping during their Telesummit on 08 April 2022," the DFA said.
The Philippines called on China "to comply with its obligations under international law, particularly the 1982 UNCLOS and the final and binding Award on the South China Sea Arbitration."
It likewise called on China to "cease and desist from the conduct of illegal actions that violate the Philippines’ sovereignty, sovereign rights, and jurisdiction in its maritime zones; and adhere to its commitments under the 2002 Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC)."
At present, the DFA is also reviewing reported activities of Chinese vessels in the Philippine waters for the filing of appropriate diplomatic action.
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