An impending arbitration ruling on the South China Sea case cannot be a leverage for the Philippines if it is analyzed objectively, a Philippine expert has said, stressing the country needs to talk with China to benefit itself as well as the region.
Alberto Encomienda, former secretary-general of the Maritime and Ocean Affairs Center of the Philippine Foreign Affairs Department, made the remarks in a recent interview with Xinhua.
An arbitral tribunal with widely contested jurisdiction will issue an award on July 12 on the South China Sea case unilaterally initiated by the Philippines, the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in The Hague said last week.
China has refused to participate in the proceedings and declared that it will never recognize the verdict, stressing that the tribunal has no jurisdiction because the case is in essence related to territorial sovereignty and maritime delimitation.
After the PCA set date for the issuance of the final award, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei reaffirmed that the arbitral tribunal has no jurisdiction over the case and the relevant subject-matter, and that it should not have heard the case or rendered the award.
Encomienda, in the interview, called for talks with China, pointing out that the Philippines and China "cannot be without each other, bow and arrow" and that China has "shown the openness to reconnect" with the Philippines and "Our issue is how to reconnect in a nice way."
The former diplomat said negotiations are in form of give and take and there are a lot of issues the Philippines can bring to China for a win-win situation, adding that both sides can agree to set aside the ruling and continue with joint development.
He expressed optimism on the future of the Philippines-China relations under the Duterte administration. However, he also noted that during the administration of former President Benigno S. Aquino III, the mindset of the Filipinos had been poisoned.
In a separate interview, Lauro Baja, former Philippine foreign affairs undersecretary, said there is more to the relationship than a court ruling on the South China Sea disputes.
He said President Duterte has already expressed readiness and willingness to have bilateral talks with China, adding, "Duterte said it because whether we lost or whether we win (in the arbitral court), we have to talk with China."
Echoing Baja, strategic analyst Cel Cainglet said, "No matter what ruling says, we have to talk to China again."
Cainglet also stressed that "U.S. has no right to interfere as they are not even the UNCLOS (United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea) signatory," adding that the South China Sea disputes should be solved among Asians. Enditem
