04 October 2013 – The Philippines reiterated that adherence to the rule of law is imperative in maintaining peace and stability in the South China Sea.
Speaking at the 2nd Expanded ASEAN Maritime Forum (EAMF) in Kuala Lumpur on 3 October 2013, Assistant Secretary Henry S. Bensurto Jr. of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA)-West Philippine Sea Center emphasized that to maintain peace and stability in the South China Sea, the region needs a rules-based framework in the management of territorial disputes and the resolution of maritime claims.
“To maintain order and stability in the South China Sea, we need predictability in the way we all behave with each other. To be predictable means, we need to have certain agreed standards, rules and norms. These standards, rules and norms in turn must be objective, impartial and non-discriminatory. International law is one objective standard,” Assistant Secretary Bensurto stressed.
Assistant Secretary Bensurto added that in the matter of seas, the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), which has been universally-recognized as the “Constitution of the Oceans,” prescribes rights, obligations and maritime entitlements that ought to be respected by all State-Parties to the Convention.
“There is a fundamental difference between entitlements and claims under international law. Expressed provisions of UNCLOS on maritime entitlements, including a coastal state’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), are rights that lawfully demand respect from all State-Parties. Claims, on the other hand, are just mere claims that may not necessarily generate rights unless duly proven in an appropriate forum,” Assistant Secretary Bensurto explained.
Assistant Secretary Bensurto led the Philippine delegation to the 4th ASEAN Maritime Forum (AMF) and 2nd EAMF in Kuala Lumpur from 01 to 03 October 2013. He was joined by representatives from the DFA, Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, Philippine Ports Authority, NAMRIA, Philippine Navy and the Philippine Coast Guard.
AMF features the 10 member States of ASEAN namely Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam while the EAMF is composed of all ASEAN member states, Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand, Republic of Korea, Russia and the United States. END