PHILIPPINE LEADERSHIP IN ASEAN: A ONCE IN A DECADE OPPORTUNITY

As the Philippines is the host and has been at the forefront of defending international law in the past, ASEAN members and its dialogue partners will expect the Philippines to take the strongest position during the discussions on the South China Sea.

On Thursday, Dec. 8, around two hundred people gathered for the Stratbase ADR Institute’s first Pilipinas Conference. Our objective had been to gather perspectives on some of the important issues that we face leading into 2017: the shift to a federal form of government, the opportunities and challenges ahead for the Philippines’ businessmen and investors, and, in advance of the Philippines’ chairmanship of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the strategic environment.

With such a varied group of doers and thinkers in the audience, unsurprisingly talk turned to many other issues as well: agriculture, labor, technology and, repeatedly, the importance of promoting and protecting the national interest. This underlying theme, of the government doing what’s best for the Philippines, came through in many of the panel dialogues and presentations. And, of course, all listeners wanted to know: How do you promote the national interest? How do you protect it?

The contrast between upholding Philippine interests and other interests was clearest during the discussion on the way forward on the South China Sea issues. The panel had been graced by the presence of no less than National Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, who was joined by Ambassador Shingo Yamagami of the Japan Institute for International Affairs, Dr. Amy Searight of the Center for Strategic and International Studies in the United States, and Mr. Aaron Connelly of the Lowy Institute in Australia.

Secretary Lorenzana began by emphasizing the importance of the rule of international law, which he believed to be “vital to guide behavior” among the countries of the region, even as they engage in direct discussions and build their relationships.

Overall, the speakers were united in their appreciation for the Philippine case against China on the West Philippine Sea, taking the time to explain their own views on the importance of ruling despite any protestations to the contrary.

As Ambassador Yamagami shared with the group, “It was the most remarkable decision in my lifetime” and that the Filipino legal team did “a hell of a job.” Both Ambassador Yamagami and Dr. Searight suggested that the Philippine government should make full use of this important legal decision, not only in a bilateral context but also in a regional and multilateral context.

On everyone’s minds must have been the Philippines’ chairmanship and hosting of ASEAN in 2017.

As of yet, there has been little news from the government over its plans for the summits next year, which will be attended by the Heads

of State and senior officials from all over the region to talk about economic policies, regional stability and security, and the multitude of other areas of cooperation.

Given President Duterte’s seemingly warmer relationship with Beijing, Southeast Asia watchers are left wondering how the Philippines will use this once-in-a-decade opportunity to show leadership on the importance of international law and adherence to the ruling.

As the Philippines is the host and has been at the forefront of defending international law in the past, ASEAN members and its dialogue partners will expect the Philippines to take the strongest position during the discussions on the South China Sea.

ASEAN has often been called an imperfect institution, usually because of its consensus- based decision-making system. This is the system that allows any single country to block statements or actions on the part of the group, even if all nine other members are in favor of it. Yet, imperfect as it may be, it is the institution that we have. For this reason alone the Philippine government would be remiss in discarding this or any other opportunity to call on Southeast Asia’s support for the full implementation of the ruling.

The Philippines’ leadership ahead notwithstanding, the panelists asked the audience to think about the fundamentals of how these disputes should be resolved. More than how the lines will be drawn in the sea and sand, the manner in which the disputes are settled will have a bearing on how, in the long run, the regional order is defined and maintained. If, for example, ASEAN is sidelined on the South China Sea issues, the body cannot expect to be the main platform for future concerns in stability and security.

For Mr. Connelly, ASEAN continues to be at the centerstage of the discussions, although the different governments in the region, such as the Widodo administration in Indonesia, could have varying levels of appreciation for the body.

For Ambassador Yamagami, ASEAN officials sometimes see the region as the grass that gets trampled when elephants — or large countries — fight. He stressed to the audience that the militarization of the South China Sea is not a matter limited to the concern of the United States and China, it is about what kind of international order all of us would like to see prevail.

After all, he emphasized, we do not want to be in a world where bullying tactics succeed and might makes right. As a small country, this is not in our national interest.

It is with this in mind that we Filipinos could take Ambassador Del Rosario’s words to heart: “We need to appreciate that a country like ours is not only a casualty of international trends, but we can also help to shape them by firmly standing for sovereign equality, while at the same time recognizing the import of interdependency among all nations within our global village.”