Carpio: 2016 Hague ruling enforced by US, other powers

THE WORLD’S naval powers are doing the “heavy lifting” in enforcing the arbitral tribunal award on the South China Sea dispute two years since its ruling, without the support of its primary beneficiary the Philippines, Acting Chief Justice Antonio T. Carpio said on Monday.

In his speech at the Kasarinlan Foreign Policy Forum, Mr. Carpio said the navies and the air forces of countries such as the United States, United Kingdom, France, Australia, Canada, India and Japan have been sailing and have been flying in the South China Sea to assert freedom of navigation and overflight.

“These naval and air operations enforce the part of the Award affirming the existence of high seas and EEZs (exclusive economic zone) in the South China Sea. This is the necessary consequence of the naval and air operations of the world’s naval powers in the South China Sea,” he said.

“Fortunately for the Filipino people, there is clearly enforcement of a core part of the award by the world’s naval powers, even if there is inexplicable reluctance on the part of the Duterte administration to enforce the award. The heavy lifting in the enforcement of the award is being done by the world’s naval powers with practically no support whatsoever from the Philippines, the state that overwhelmingly won the Award and the state that stands to benefit immensely from the enforcement of the award,” he added.

Mr. Carpio, who was part of the legal team in the arbitration case, made the statement three days before the arbitral tribunal award on the South China Sea dispute between the Philippines and China marks its second anniversary on Thursday.