MANILA, Philippines – Muling iginiit ng Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) nitong Lunes, Marso 16 ang soberanya ng Pilipinas sa Bajo de Masinloc at Kalayaan Island Group.
“The Philippines flatly rejects China’s assertion of indisputable sovereignty over the entire South China Sea. This claim has no basis in fact, no basis in history, and no basis in international law,” pahayag ni DFA Maritime Affairs spokesperson Rogelio Villanueva Jr.
Ang pahayag niya ay tugon sa pahayag ng Chinese Embassy noong Marso 14 na tinukoy ang umano’y liham mula kay dating Philippine Ambassador to Germany Bienvenido Tan kay German HAM radio operator Dieter Löffler.
Sa liham kasi ay sinabi na ang Bajo de Masinloc o Scarborough Shoal ay nasa labas ng territorial sovereignty ng Pilipinas sa 1899 Treaty of Paris, ngunit sinabing ang lugar ay pasok sa 200-mile economic zone ng Pilipinas.
“As regards the recent letter posted by the Chinese Embassy in Manila, the DFA will not engage in conjecture or speculation over a document of uncertain origin and authenticity, and certainly without value. There is no merit in debating supposed documentary artifacts produced by third parties and presented as posts on social media, especially if these third parties have vested interests and willfully misconstrue and misrepresent established facts” ani Villanueva.
“The Philippines likewise consistently exercised and upheld sovereignty, sovereign rights and jurisdiction over its archipelago and other territories, including Bajo de Masinloc and the high-tide features of the Kalayaan Island Group, which is incontrovertible and firmly founded on international law and effective administration,” dagdag pa.
Malakas din aniya ang patunay ng historical at legal foundations ng soberanya ng Pilipinas sa Bajo de Masinloc.
Sa Murillo Velarde map of 1734 “clearly portrays the high-tide feature as Philippine territory, and all subsequent cartographic records affirm the same.”
“The Philippines has exercised continuous, uninterrupted sovereignty and jurisdiction over Bajo de Masinloc for centuries — demonstrated through detailed hydrographic surveys, official government correspondences, and decisive acts of administration, including its designation as a target range by the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the demolition by Philippine authorities of illegal structures erected on the shoal by foreign smugglers. Sovereignty is not merely claimed — it is exercised,” ayon pa kay Villanueva.
Samantala, sinabi niya na bukas ang DFA sa pagbabalik ng dialogue mechanisms kasama ang China.
“Our pursuit of dialogue reflects a calibrated and principled commitment to peaceful dispute settlement — it does not, in any manner, dilute or qualify the Philippines’ firm, unequivocal positions in the West Philippine Sea. Our sovereignty is non-negotiable,” aniya. RNT/JGC
