Monthly Archives: June 2016

Aquino: The president who brought China to court

MANILA, Philippines – It was not an easy decision for Philippine President Benigno Simeon Cojuangco Aquino III, leader of a developing country heavily dependent on China when it comes to trade. China, after all, is the Philippines’ second biggest trading partner, based on the latest government statistics released in September 2015.  China, too, is the […]

The Emperor’s Mysterious Map and the South China Sea

Is China censoring ancient clues to the secret history of the Spratly Islands? Within the imperial chambers of the Wanli Emperor (萬曆), sovereign of the Ming Dynasty from 1563 to 1620, could be found an encyclopedic work of cartographic craftsmanship unlike anything existing in Europe. It was a multicolored world map mounted on a six-paneled […]

Can Hague ruling help curb China advances?

Are China’s claims and actions in the South China Sea violations of international law? As early as by the end of this month, a court of arbitration in The Hague is expected to hand down the first ruling on the issue in a case initiated by the Philippines based on the U.N. Convention on the […]

On the eve of a verdict

Legal circles are abuzz with talk of an impending verdict in the dispute between the Philippines and the People’s Republic of China. The arbitral tribunal that has jurisdiction under the compulsory dispute-settlement provisions of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) is said to be ready to promulgate judgment sometime in the […]

OPINION: Ways to make China comply

Senior Associate Justice Antonio T. Carpio discusses the Philippines’ options during his lecture before members of the Philippine Press Institute. The Philippines is not exactly helpless if the United Nations Arbitral Court decides in our favor in the case we filed against China and China ignores it. The Hague-based U.N. Artbitral Court is expected to […]

Indonesia president visits islands on warship, makes point to China

JAKARTA: Indonesia’s president held a cabinet meeting aboard a warship off the Natuna Islands on Thursday (Jun 23), asserting sovereignty over waters in the southern reaches of the South China Sea after Beijing stated its “over-lapping claim” on nearby waters. President Joko Widodo’s visit to the remote island chain along with his chief security minister, […]