West Philippine Sea Research Papers (original) (raw)
Cherie Ann R. Lim
AB Foreign Service, FS 302
International Political Economy
Sir Jumel Estrañero
March 24, 2018
Despite Beijing’s refusal to take part in the proceedings, on 29 October 2015 the Court of Permanent Arbitration (PCA) issued a ruling on jurisdiction and admissibility of the UNCLOS arbitration case launched by the Philippines against... more
Despite Beijing’s refusal to take part in the proceedings, on 29 October 2015 the Court of Permanent Arbitration (PCA) issued a ruling on jurisdiction and admissibility of the UNCLOS arbitration case launched by the Philippines against China. The Court unanimously decided that it had jurisdiction concerning seven of the fifteen claims put forward by Manila, with a decision on a further seven to be reached when considering their merits. The ruling by the PAC is thus a major victory for Manila and maritime democracies, since China’s view that the Philippines had promised to pursue only negotiations, and her assertion that no decision could be taken on maritime zones until delimitation had taken place, were rejected. While the decision on the merits of the case will have to wait until at least next year, and a ruling in favor of Manila does not guarantee in and by itself that Beijing will comply, this is nevertheless a major step forward for the notion that it is right plus might and not just might in isolation, which will determine the future of this vital sea. The paper looks at the court decision, China's reaction, and Taiwan's position.
An analysis of arbitration over the Philippines v. China case with comparative analysis as to similar cases. It contains why arbitration is possible, what the ruling by the PCA is about, and the impact it has on the nations with... more
An analysis of arbitration over the Philippines v. China case with comparative analysis as to similar cases. It contains why arbitration is possible, what the ruling by the PCA is about, and the impact it has on the nations with territorial claims over the West Philippine Sea
This is the final installment in a four-part series devoted to China’s 7 December 2014 document, putting forward her views on the Philippines’ international arbitration case on the South China Sea. Although Beijing is refusing to take... more
This is the final installment in a four-part series devoted to China’s 7 December 2014 document, putting forward her views on the Philippines’ international arbitration case on the South China Sea. Although Beijing is refusing to take part in the proceedings, as confirmed following the Court’s 29 October 2015 ruling on jurisdiction, by issuing this document, and communicating in other ways with the Court, the PRC has failed to completely stay aloof from the case. It is thus interesting to analyze China’s narrative as laid down in that document.
The study is conducted to create a critical analysis of the discursive and ideological aspects of the opinion columns in the major broadsheets in the Philippines. This encompasses the three most popular newspaper publications namely:... more
The study is conducted to create a critical analysis of the discursive and ideological aspects of the opinion columns in the major broadsheets in the Philippines. This encompasses the three most popular newspaper publications namely: Philippine Daily Inquirer, The Philippine Star, and The Manila Bulletin. The researchers of this present study gathered an authentic copy of the newspaper columns from the stated publications, containing West Philippine Sea dispute as the topics of the articles since Critical Discourse Analysis has been known for putting a highlight to a particular raging social issues in the society. Thus, the primary corpus of this study uses text analysis to identify the most common linguistic feature in the columns in which conjunctions has been the most frequent one. Also, after distinguishing the most common linguistic cue, the study has to use structural analysis to primarily interpret those linguistic items as to how they are usedinthearticles as well as point out how the columns are structured in terms of the discursive and thematic organization which falls under the microstructure and macrostructure of discourses as far as Teunn Van Dijk is concerned. Thus, through the textual analysis and structural analysis, this study is able to reveal that socializing in different aspects is the most common ideology of the writers of the three major broadsheet in the country as they possess a power in influencing and highlighting the issue on the territorial dispute.
On 29 October 2015 the Court of Permanent Arbitration (PCA) ruled that it had jurisdiction on the arbitration case launched by the Philippines against China, concerning the South China Sea. It unanimously decided that it had jurisdiction... more
On 29 October 2015 the Court of Permanent Arbitration (PCA) ruled that it had jurisdiction on the arbitration case launched by the Philippines against China, concerning the South China Sea. It unanimously decided that it had jurisdiction concerning seven of the fifteen claims put forward by Manila, with a further seven to be decided simultaneously with its ruling on the case itself. This follows Beijing’s refusal to join the proceedings, despite issuing a position paper, and prompts the question of how the PRC will react. While still too early to tell for sure, the first moves by the PRC seem to indicate a three-pronged strategy, whereby Beijing insists in denying the court’s jurisdiction, moves forward in the deployment of aircraft in artificial islands, and explores agreements with some of the claimants. The two first pillars are in line with previous practice, while the second has some precedents, such as the 2000 partial delimitation and fisheries agreement with Vietnam in the Gulf of Tonkin, but may prompt a very different scenario from the one we have seen in the last few years, when Chinese claims have been opposed by other states in the region, the latter careful however not to give any impression they were setting up an informal coalition. This paper examines these three aspects of China’s initial response to the PCA’s ruling.
Manila’s international arbitration bid has been repeatedly rejected by Beijing, which argues that it does not fall under the compulsory arbitration provisions of UNCLOS. Even after the Court ruled onjurisdiction, on 29 October 2015,... more
Manila’s international arbitration bid has been repeatedly rejected by Beijing, which argues that it does not fall under the compulsory arbitration provisions of UNCLOS. Even after the Court ruled onjurisdiction, on 29 October 2015, China stuck to this position, as clear from an official statement the following day. However, despite repeatedly refusing to appear before the court, last year Beijing chose to issue a formal document stating her posture. For some this may simply be a restatement of China’s position, confirming that it will not take part in the proceedings. For others, it amounts to a small victory for the Philippines and the rule of law at sea, since China has finally been unable to completely ignore the proceedings. Whatever one thinks about it, it is useful to examine the document, dated 7 December 2014 (unclear whether any pun intended), while we wait for the Permanent Court of Arbitration to hold the first oral hearings on the substantive aspects of the case, scheduled for late November 2015. We shall be doing so in this four-part series.