By Darryl John Esguerra | Philippine News Agency
President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. on Thursday said the Philippines remains firm in its position on the West Philippine Sea (WPS) even after China objected to the passage of the new maritime and archipelagic sea lane laws.
In a media interview, Marcos said nothing changes in the government’s policies even after China summoned the Philippine ambassador to protest the signing of the new laws.
“Ang sabi nila that…they will continue to protect what they defined as their sovereign territory. Of course, we do not agree with their definition of sovereign territory,” he told reporters.
The President last week signed the Republic Act (RA) 12064 or the Philippine Maritime Zones Act and RA 12065 or the Archipelagic Sea Lanes Act into law to strengthen the country’s maritime claims and bolster its territorial integrity.
The Maritime Zones Act aims to declare the rights and entitlements of the Philippines over its maritime zones to establish legal bases for the conduct of social, economic, commercial, and other activities in the areas.
RA 12064 provides for a general declaration of the maritime zones under the jurisdiction of the Philippines, including internal waters, archipelagic waters, territorial sea, contiguous zone, exclusive economic zone (EEZ), and continental shelf.
Meanwhile, the Archipelagic Sea Lanes Act designates the sea lanes and air routes suitable for the continuous and expeditious passage of foreign ships and aircraft through or over its archipelagic water and the adjacent territorial sea.
RA 12065 prevents arbitrary international passage in the Philippine archipelago and prescribes the rights and obligations of foreign ships and aircraft exercising the right of archipelagic sea lanes passage through the established Philippine archipelagic sea lanes.
Tensions between China and the Philippines over the West Philippine Sea have escalated throughout the year, particularly over the Scarborough Shoal where incidents of Chinese harassment have been reported.