Senator Alan Peter Cayetano on Tuesday, October 31 suggested that the government use the West Philippine Sea title over the proposed "Sea of Asia" to provide clarity in its territorial rights over a specific body of water.

Though Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin “Boying” Remulla’s idea of renaming the disputed territory as “Sea of Asia” has some merit, Cayetano said the Philippines can assert its claims better and succeed in convincing the United Nations (UN)-backed Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague if it uses the West Philippine Sea title in the complaint they intend to file against China.

"Maganda po y’ung idea ni Secretary Boying (The Secretary’s idea is good) if just to emphasize that (71 percent) of the world is water, and that napakaimportante na ‘wag tayong mag-away-away diyan kundi magtulungan (it’s very important that we don’t fight over it),” Cayetano told reporters in an interview.

“But the name matters, because I also use the term West Philippine Sea when talking to world leaders and opinion-makers,” the senator said recalling his experience as then Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) secretary in 2017-2018.

The lawmaker said that when it comes to standing ground on the dispute, sticking to the use of West Philippine Sea is the way to go especially since the 2016 arbitral ruling has declared the Philippines’ right on the territory.

“In fact one of the former American Secretary of States, sabi niya, ‘Oh, that (term West Philippine Sea) is interesting. Yes, we should start using that,” the Cayetano recalled.

“Because even some of our allies refer to it as South China Sea, not West Philippine Sea,” he added.

The Department of Justice’s (DOJ) earlier said it plans to use “Sea of Asia,” instead of the WPS when it files a complaint against China over environmental damages in Panatag Shoal and Spratly Islands next year, 2024.

In proposing the use of “Sea of Asia,” Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said the Philippines can raise its various complaints against China in the WPS region by pointing out that the body of water is a shared resource for the whole world.

The area was officially named West Philippine Sea on Sept. 5, 2012 through Administrative Order No. 29 issued by then-President Benigno Aquino III.

Other senators who weighed in on the idea of using “Sea of Asia” instead of the WPS were senators Jinggoy Ejercito Estrada and Grace Poe, who said the matter should be resolved by international law experts.

But Estrada believes using the term WPS is more appropriate given the the title is a “geopolitical designation of our government, an alternative name to the parts of the South China Sea that are within the Philippines’ Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) in which we have territorial and maritime claims in that region.”