Daza: China claims misguided

The Philippines, through the Department of Foreign Affairs, on Sunday called on China to reconsider its stance and claims, which it deemed as “baseless and misleading,” in the West Philippine Sea.

Responding to remarks made by Mao Ning, spokesperson of the Foreign Ministry of China, DFA spokesperson Ma. Teresita Daza debunked Beijing’s historic rights and sweeping claims on the South China Sea.

“The Philippines has long had sovereignty and exercised administrative control over Bajo de Masinloc, as well as various features west of Palawan, which now form the Kalayaan Island Group,” Daza said in a statement.

“These features appeared and were clearly identified in the administrative maps of the Philippines during the Spanish colonial period, including the 1734 Murillo Velarde Map of the Philippines,” she added.

She also noted that the territorial dispute between the Philippines and China in the West Philippine Sea has long been settled with the 2016 Arbitral Award. “As has been settled by the 2016 Arbitral Award, China’s claims to historic rights, or other sovereign rights or jurisdiction beyond the limits of the maritime entitlements provided by the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, are without legal effect,” she said.

Daza added that the Philippines “maintains a firm stand against misguided claims and irresponsible actions that violate Philippine sovereignty, sovereign rights, and jurisdiction in its own maritime domain.”

She also belied Beijing’s claims that the Philippines is using the issue in the South China Sea to advance its own interests. “The Philippines has never used the South China Sea issue to heighten tensions, mislead the international community, or undermine peace and stability in the region,” she said.