Malacañang said yesterday that the Panatag Shoal is covered by Philippine territory and is not included in Chinese territory.
Acting presidential spokesperson Martin Andanar made the statement after Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesman Wang Wenbin issued a statement telling them the said territory.
According to Andanar, the Philippines also owns the ocean in the said area and is within the country’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
“The Philippine position is we continue to exercise full sovereignty over Bajo de Masinloc and its territorial sea and sovereign rights and jurisdiction over the surrounding EEZ and continental shelf,” said Andanar.
China has claimed ownership of the Scarborough (Panatag) Shoal also known as Bajo de Masinloc after the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) reported that on March 2, a Chinese Coast Guard vessel had a “close distance maneuvering” incident approaching nearly 21 yards to BRP Malabrigo in Panatag Shoal.
“China has sovereignty over Huangyan Dao and its adjacent waters as well as sovereign rights and jurisdiction over relevant waters,” he said.
“We hope that the Philippine ships will earnestly respect China’s sovereignty and rights and interests, abide by China’s domestic law and international law, and avoid interfering with the patrol and law enforcement of the China Coast Guard in the above-mentioned waters,” Wang said.
Malacañang: Panatag Shoal belongs to the Philippines
The Philippine government sued China before the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague in 2013. The Court ruled in favor of the Philippines in July 2016 when it junked China’s nine-dash claim over the South China Sea.
In the same ruling, the international court ruled that the Spratly Islands, Panganiban (Mischief) Reef, Ayungin (Second Thomas) Shoal, and Recto (Reed) Bank are within the Philippine Exclusive Economic Zone.
The court also declared Panatag Shoal a common fishing ground, making China’s assault against Filipino fishers illegal.
Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas (Pamalakaya), a fishermen’s group, said Beijing should be forced to follow the 2016 verdict.
“Beijing has no right to dictate who can stay and who will be ejected from the seas that they have no legal and political claim,” Pamalakaya said in a statement.
“We assert to China our freedom of navigation, especially our right to fish in our territorial waters,” it said.
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