PAGBABAGO
Last Wednesday’s briefing organized by the Asian Institute of Journalism and Communication in cooperation with the Embassy of the Kingdom of Netherlands was a return to the basics and an attempt to “amplify the true narrative about the West Philippine Sea.” It identified key message misinformation, the Philippine arbitration’s victory at the Hague, the role of the Murillo Velarde Map in the said victory, and the significance of media freedom in the West Philippine Sea.
The briefing was also intended to promote not only the amplification of truth about the West Philippine Sea through free and responsible journalism, but also through government’s efforts in protecting the country’s sovereignty, national interest, and ensuring the rule of law and gaining support from the diplomatic community in fostering regional stability through dialogue and adherence to international law. It provided a venue for discussion of issues and developments concerning the WPS among stakeholders – the government, media, and the diplomatic community.
About 40, mostly from the diplomatic community - ambassadors and other members of the diplomatic corps as well as representatives from the media — participated in the forum. The 12 ambassadors were H.E, Alvaro Jara, Embassy of Chile; H.E. Christian Halaas Lyster, Royal Norwegian Embassy of Manila; H.E, Juha Pyykko, Embassy of Finland; H.E. Marie Fontanel, Embassy of France; H.E. Peter Kell, Embassy of New Zealand; H.E. Johann Brieger, Austrian Embassy; H.E. Raduta Dana Matache, Embassy of Romania; H.E. Annika Thunborg, Embassy of Sweden, H.E. Karel Hejc, Embassy of the Czech Republic, H.E. Daniel Hernandez Joseph, Embassy of Mexico, H.E. William Carlos, Embassy of Ireland, and H.E. Miguel Utray Embassy of Spain.
In his opening remarks, Mel V. Velarde, chair of the Asian Institute of Journalism and Communication and Group, cited the “Holy Grail of Philippine Maps: the Murillo Velarde 1734 Map which he bought at the Sotheby auction and donated to the Philippine government. In a slide presentation, keynote speaker, the Hon. Supreme Court Senior Associate Justice Antonio T. Carpio showed old maps and documents which depicted the Philippine Island Territories in the West Philippine Sea. Commodore Jay Tristan Tariela, spokesperson of the Philippine Coast Guard presented “Current Challenges and Thrusts in the West Philippine Sea.
In his presentation, Justice Carpio started with the question, “What are the islands in the WPS that are part of Philippine territory under sovereignty? He answered his own question by showing Bajo Masinloc and the Kalayaan Island Group or KIG, This, he noted, was confirmed in the 1935 Constitution. Three treaties – 1895 Treaty of Paris ceded to the US the Philippine Islands. The 1900 Treaty of Washington clarified that the cession included islands belonging to the Philippine archipelago.
The 1930 Treaty between the US and UK demarcating the boundary between No. Borneo and So. Philippines defined the Philippine archipelago. In the 1734 Murillo Velarde map, Spain claimed the Spratlys and Scarborough Shoal as part of the territory. Using documents and handbooks, he pointed out that the “critical date” when the territorial dispute arose was not later than 1947 when China finally made its claims.
Both the 1734 Murillo Velarde Map and the 1875 Carita General del Archipelago Filipino are historical documents establishing Philippine sovereignty over Scarborough Shoal and the KIG.
Justice Carpio recommends that the Philippines should invite China, Vietnam and Malaysia to submit the territorial dispute in the Spratlys to voluntary arbitration by the International Court of Justice (ICJ). Separately, the Philippines should also invite China to submit the dispute over Scarborough Shoal to voluntary arbitration by the ICJ. Hopefully, this could be settled by peaceful means as mandated by the UN Charter.
If the other disputed states are not willing to submit to the arbitration of ICJ, the Philippines can present its iron-clad evidence of sovereignty over the Spratlys and Scarborough Shoal to the court of world opinion. The whole world will then know that the Spratlys and Scarborough Shoal truly belong to the Philippines.
A panel discussion was led by Roby Alampay, Asian regional adviser, International Media Support on Media Freedom Mis/Disinformation and Reporting, together with Mara Cepeda, Philippine correspondent of The Straits Times and Chino Gaston, broadcast journalist of GMA Network. An open forum clarified issues raised by the speakers. This was followed by the turnover of the official replica of the Murillo Velarde Map to the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
H.E. Marielle Geraedts, Embassy of the Kingdom of Netherlands gave the closing remarks. ([email protected])