China back-off

Photo by Akbayan Party

Filipinos from different parts of the world demonstrated their unity and solidarity with one another as the global protest against Chinese incursions in Panatag Shoal kicks off today, Akbayan Party said on Friday in a press statement.

Organized by a coalition of different advocacy groups and social movements, the protest activity dubbed as the "global day of action against China's bullying in the West Philippine Sea", is the largest demonstration so far of different Filipino groups calling on the Chinese government to pull out of the Panatag shoal.

At the Chinese Consular Office in Makati, site of the Philippine protest, participants to the "global action" demanded China “to immediately pull out all of its sea vessels in the area" asserting that Panatag shoal is an integral part of Philippine territory.

"Today, Filipinos from different parts of the world rise up to confront the bullying of the Chinese government in the region. We hope China hears us loud and clear. We may be a small nation, but we will not let our country's sovereignty be trampled upon," Akbayan Acting President Marie Chris Cabreros said.

Cabreros said the global protest aims to call the attention of the international community regarding the tension in Panatag shoal. She said international opinion is one of the best deterrents against China's overbearing attitude in the region.

"We would like to internationalize this issue and galvanize global public opinion on the side of the Filipinos. We would like to expose the Chinese government's lack of respect for international law and the sovereign rights of its neighbors," Cabreros said.

"We remind China that it cannot continue to use gunboat diplomacy in the region or worse, to willfully violate the territory of other countries without courting the ire of the international community. We don't think China is ready to isolate itself. The world is watching," Cabreros added.

Akbayan also chided the Chinese foreign ministry for issuing a travel advisory warning its nationals visiting the Philippines against possible reprisals. According to the group, the protest actions were aimed against the continued intrusions of Chinese vessels in the Panatag Shoal and not against the Chinese people.

"Our protest action is directed against the policies and the bullying of the Chinese government in the Panatag shoal. It is not a demonstration against the Chinese people," Cabreros said.

Cabreros said the Chinese people are always welcome to visit the Philippines.

"The long history of relations between Filipinos And the Chinese people run contrary to the Chinese foreign ministry’s absurd claims that possible reprisals might target their nationals. It flies in the face of logic. We are a very friendly and hospitable people," according to Cabreros.

"We can be very passionate in our assertion of our country's sovereignty but it doesn't mean we severe our friendship and ties with peoples of other nations. We hope our Chinese friends will continue to visit us. It's more fun in the Philippines, " Cabreros said.

However, the groups appealed to the Chinese people to demand their government to settle the issue peacefully and diplomatically.

“Filipinos are in solidarity with the Chinese people and we urge them to convince their government to resolve the issue by sitting  in the international tribunal of the law of the seas (ITLOS) together with the Philippine government,” Cabreros said.

According to Akbayan, the Chinese government's reaction to the global protest showed that it was affected by international pressure.

“The recent remarks made by the Chinese government prove that international pressure through democratic and collective action by the Filipino people works. We hope this would jumpstart the revival of the Filipino people's activism against any foreign entity that would undermine our country's sovereignty," Cabreros explained.

Akbayan also expressed relief that the United States government was taking a hands-off role on the issue.

“We are glad that the United States has a hands-off policy in this matter as this is an issue that does not concern them. We reiterate that this is a regional issue and should be best addressed by regional stakeholders using multilateral mechanisms, Cabreros said.

The group said Southeast Asian nations, particularly the members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) should take a more pro-active stance on the issue considering that China’s claim on the West Philippine Sea not only infringed on Philippine territory but also on areas claimed by other ASEAN countries.

“I think ASEAN must now lend its voice to this growing clamor for China to stop its intrusions and withdraw from the West Philippine Sea. If we as a regional community cannot show our collective voice, then it becomes easier for China to bully every Southeast Asian country,” Cabreros concluded.

Other protest actions were also conducted abroad in front of the Chinese embassies and Consulates by Filipino communities in various cities such as New York, San Francisco, Sydney, Austria, Vancouver and Hong Kong.

The global protest action was spearheaded by the US Pinoys for Good Governance, led by Filipino-American philanthropist and civic leader Loida Nicolas-Lewis, in response to the continued intrusions of Chinese vessels in Panatag Shoal.

The stand-off started in April 8 with the intrusion of Chinese fishing vessels in the area and the subsequent entry of Chinese government vessels preventing the Philippine Navy from apprehending the Chinese vessels. China has refused demands from the Philippines to elevate the dispute to the ITLOS.