31 October 2013 – The Philippines reiterated its call in the United Nations (UN) for the peaceful, rules-based settlement of maritime disputes throughout the world pursuant to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), especially in the West Philippine Sea where tensions have been rising for the last three years owing to China’s naval posturing in pursuit of its nine-dash claim over the entire South China Sea.
At a forum held in New York on October 29 with visiting legal advisers of Ministries of Foreign Affairs and diplomats accredited to the UN on the occasion of the annual International Law Week at the world body, Paul Reichler, the Philippines’ lead counsel in its maritime arbitration case against China, noted that arbitration gives politically, economically or militarily weaker countries “the rare opportunity to hope, through peaceful settlement and the rule of law, for equal treatment with stronger countries”.
In his welcome remarks, Ambassador Libran Cabactulan, the country’s permanent representative to the UN, said that, “UNCLOS, our constitution for the oceans, is becoming more relevant than ever before, particularly for developing countries which are poised to explore and exploit their own exclusive economic zone, their own continental shelf, and even the deep seabed, for their development.”
Lawyer’s lawyer
Reichler enjoys a leading reputation as a preferred lawyer for sovereign states.
According to Ambassador Cabactulan, who presided over the discussion, “Reichler is a top-ranked international lawyer with extensive experience representing sovereign countries before the International Court of Justice and the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, among others. He was lawyer for Nicaragua in the landmark 1986 ICJ case, where the World Court ruled that the United States illegally used force – in violation of the UN Charter – against the Sandinista government of Nicaragua. But he has particular experience representing and advising states in land and maritime boundary disputes with neighboring states.”
Reichler presented an overview of UNCLOS’ compulsory arbitration process, interpreting issues of choice of procedure and jurisdiction through illustrative cases he previously worked on as counsel for sovereign states. END