All parties using parts of the South China Sea must come up with some sort of a Code of Conduct.
Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel III gave this advice following a recent near collision between the Coast Guard vessels of the Philippines and China in the Spratlys in the West Philippine Sea (WPS).
Pimentel said this a "very unfortunate incident which all should endeavor to avoid a repeat."
"This is the reason why those claiming and using parts of the SCS (South China Sea) and WPS must come up with some sort of a code of conduct,’’ he stressed.
"Otherwise there will always be incidents like this where one party will appear to be a 'Goliath', because it is in reality a giant country, and be labeled as a bully,’’ he added.
"It is to the best interest of all parties to start behaving like civilized, respectful, and reasonable neighbors. Start dialogue. Make concrete gains, no matter how small," he added.