Rody gives China free pass on sea row
While the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) expressed its uneasiness over North Korea, the 10-nation bloc went easy on China by adopting a Philippine-backed watered-down version of a statement dropping references to Beijing’s claims in the South China Sea.
The statement issued at the end of the 30th ASEAN summit, which was released yesterday, made no mention of China’s “land reclamation and militarization” and the arbitral ruling in favor of the
Philippines.
References also dropped the word “tensions” or “escalation of activities” that were reflected in an earlier draft statement seen on Wednesday.
“We reaffirmed the importance of the need to enhance mutual trust and confidence, exercising self-restraint in the conduct of activities, and avoiding actions that may further complicate the situation, and pursuing the peaceful resolution of disputes, without resorting to the threat or use of force,” the ASEAN chairman’s statement said.
The draft statement seen on Wednesday made no mention of China’s island-building in the South China Sea and the ruling of a UN backed arbitral court invalidating Beijing’s excessive and expansive claims.
Four ASEAN member states disagreed when an earlier draft of the statement did not mention the issue of land reclamation and militarization in the South China Sea that were reflected in the statement issued last year in Laos.
Southeast Asian leaders altered the statement, seen by The STAR on Saturday, mentioning “land reclamation and militarization” in the disputed waters.
“We reaffirmed the importance of enhancing mutual trust and confidence, exercising self-restraint in the conduct of activities, avoiding actions, such as land reclamation and militarization that may further com- plicate the situation, and pursuing the settlement of disputes by peaceful means, without resorting to the threat or use of force, in accordance with the universally recognized principles of international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS),” the statement said.
However, the words “land reclamation and militarization” were dropped in the final statement.
While the final statement mentioned concerns expressed by some ASEAN leaders over recent developments in the South China Sea, they noted “the improving cooperation between ASEAN and China.”
President Duterte set the tone on Thursday when he said the arbitral ruling was a non-issue at the meeting of the 10-nation bloc in Manila.
Duterte said there is no point to press China to comply with The Hague ruling invalidating its claims in the South China Sea.
When asked by reporters if he would raise the arbitral ruling at the ASEAN summit, the President answered: “You must be dreaming.”
The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) was mum on attempts by officials of the Chinese Foreign Ministry and the Chinese embassy in Manila to influence the content of the statement.
“I’m not aware of any representations by the Chinese embassy on the issue,” Foreign Affairs spokesman Robespierre Bolivar said.
The final ASEAN statement mentioned in a section separate to the South China Sea chapter the need to show “full respect for legal and diplomatic processes” in resolving disputes.
“We reaffirmed the shared commitment to maintaining and promot- ing peace, security and stability in the region, as well as to the peaceful resolution of disputes, including full respect for legal and diplomatic processes, without resorting to the threat or use of force.”
The ASEAN leaders reaffirmed the importance of maintaining peace, stability, security and freedom of navigation and overflight in and above the South China Sea.
The leaders underscored the importance of the full and effective implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC) in its entirety.
They welcomed the progress to complete a framework of the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea (COC) by middle of this year, in order to facilitate its early conclusion.
“We recognized the long-term benefits that would be gained from having the South China Sea as a sea of peace, stability and sustainable development,” the statement said.
China and ASEAN aim to finish by the middle of this year a framework for a code of conduct to ease tension in the disputed South China Sea.
Since 2010, China and the 10-member ASEAN states have been discussing a set of rules aimed at avoiding conflict among rival claimants in the busy waterway.
The discussions however were overshadowed by the arbitration court ruling that China had no historic title over the South China Sea and had breached the Philippines’ sovereign rights there. The decision infuriated Beijing, which dismissed the court’s authority.
Manila lodged the suit against Beijing in early 2013, saying that after 17 years of negotiations it had exhausted all political and diplomatic avenues to settle the dispute.
China claims most of the sea, even waters approaching neighboring countries, based on a vaguely defined “nine-dash” policy that virtually laid claim to almost all of South China Sea.
In recent years Beijing has rapidly built up reefs and outcrops into artificial islands with facilities capable of military use.
As well as the Philippines, several other states like Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei have competing claims, and the dispute has also embroiled the US, which has defense treaties with several allies in the region.
Do not interfere
In another statement released yesterday, the ASEAN called anew on nations, including the 10-nation bloc’s “dialogue partners” to honor the principle of “non-interference in the internal affairs of the member states.”
President Duterte, as chairman of the ASEAN summit, also brought to the 10-nation bloc his campaign against illegal drugs by calling on leaders to ensure that the region is drug-free.
ASEAN adopted Duterte’s speech on Saturday for non-interference in internal affairs. The President made a similar appeal in his summit opening statement.
Duterte made the call after repeated criticisms by ASEAN’s dialogue partners, European Union and the US, which had been critical on his brutal campaign against illegal drugs.
The DFA said the Philippines remains committed to combatting the drug problem jointly with the ASEAN and the international community.
Human rights watchdog Amnesty International (AI) called on ASEAN leaders to take a stand against the Philippines’ war on drugs that has left thousands dead under Duterte, the host of this year’s regional summit in Manila.
AI said ASEAN leaders must consider whether the killings amount to a serious breach of the bloc’s charter, particularly its pledge to human rights.
Champa Patel, Amnesty’s director for Southeast Asia and the Pacific, said the Philippines’ chairing the ASEAN summit “is a scandal, and should prompt the government to make independent and effective investigations into unlawful killings an immediate priority.”
The DFA said the Philippines had long recognized the grave dangers posed by the drug menace to society.
“In view of this the Philippines remains committed to combating the problem jointly with ASEAN member states and in collaboration with the international community,” DFA’s Bolivar said.
“We note ASEAN’s position statement delivered at the 59th Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) special session on 14 March 2016 that reaffirmed the sovereign right and responsibility of each country to decide on the best approach to address its drug problem, taking into consideration the context and norms of its society,” Bolivar said.