Justice Antonio T. Carpio Good afternoon to everyone. Allow me to thank the sponsors of this Exhibit – the Institute of Maritime and Ocean Affairs headed by Atty. Elma Leogardo, the Maritime Law Association of the Philippines headed by Atty. Iris Baguilat, and the De La Salle University represented here this afternoon by Vice Chancellor […]
HON. ALBERT F. DEL ROSARIO Secretary of Foreign Affairs Introduction Supreme Court Senior Associate, the Honorable Justice Antonio T. Carpio; The Honorable Leila De Lima, Secretary of Justice; The Honorable Voltaire Gazmin, Secretary of National Defense; The Honorable Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales; The Honorable Chairman Juan Andres Baustista,PCGG; Bro. Michael Broughton, FSC, Vice Chancellor for Lasallian […]
China says its land reclamation work in the South China Sea is “totally justifiable” as it has “sovereignty” over the area. Its foreign affairs ministry spokesman Hua Chunying was responding to a BBC report which documented China’s construction work in disputed waters. The Philippines has accused China of illegal building in the area. China is […]
The BBC has published a multimedia report on the scramble for control over the South China Sea, with a particular focus on the clash between China and the Philippines. In the BBC report, entitled “China’s Island Factory,” reporter Rupert Wingfield-Hayes describes his journey on a Filipino fishing boat to visit “new islands” created by Chinese […]
“Millions of tonnes of rock and sand have been dredged up from the sea floor and pumped into the reef to form new land. There are cement-pumping trucks, cranes, large steel pipes, and the flash of welding torches.” These are the words of BBC journalist Rupert Wingfield-Hayes describing China’s construction activities at the Johnson South […]
New islands are being made in the disputed South China Sea by the might of the Chinese state. But a group of marooned Filipinos on a rusting wreck is trying to stand in the way. The boat pitches up and down and rolls from side to side in the heavy swell. The noise of the […]
“Is Vietnam or China legally right in this confrontation?”: According to UNCLOS as has been interpreted by the Permanent Court of Arbitration, the answer is definitely Vietnam, regardless of the answers to the first two questions. After two and a half months of confrontation with Vietnam, on 15/7/2014 China withdrew the billion-dollar oil rig HY-981 […]
The close encounter on Aug. 19 between a US Navy P-8 Poseidon patrol aircraft and a Chinese Air Force J-11 fighter-bomber over the South China Sea is a reminder of the growing clash of interests between the two great powers. Pentagon spokesman Rear Adm. John Kirby accused the Chinese fighter pilot of flying within 20 […]
(Reuters) – Vietnam will soon have a credible naval deterrent to China in the South China Sea in the form of Kilo-class submarines from Russia, which experts say could make Beijing think twice before pushing its much smaller neighbor around in disputed waters. A master of guerrilla warfare, Vietnam has taken possession of two of […]
A quick addendum to Wednesday’s column about language and the law of the sea. We err if we place too much faith in the power of written documents such as constitutions, laws, and international covenants of various types. Putting the right words on the page constitutes part of the challenge. That’s what lawmakers and diplomats […]