Naming undersea features shows China’s intent to encroach on Benham Rise — JV Ejercito

Beijing's move to name five underwater features in Benham Rise (Philippine Rise) shows the superpower's intent to take the territory as its own, Senator JV Ejecito said on Wednesday.

"Well, the mere fact they already named portions of Benham Rise, they have given Chinese names. That’s already a sign they already want to infringe on our territory," Ejercito told reporters at a briefing.

"Kumbaga mayroon talagang balak sila na kunin sa atin 'to. Bakit nila papangalanan ng Chinese name 'yun?" he added.

This was after maritime law expert Jay Batongbacal revealed Wednesday on Facebook that the International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) last year approved names proposed by China for the five underwater features.

Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said the Philippine government has protested the move, adding that the Philippine embassy in Beijing has lodged the complaint with Chinese government.

At the briefing, Ejercito pushed for the protest, saying it is the Philippines' "sworn duty" to fight for and protect its sovereignty and territorial integrity.

The senator stressed that the Philippines must exhaust all diplomatic means since it continues to be "bullied" by China's flexing its military power in the region.

"What China has been doing is they are already bullying the Philippine government. Of course, admittedly, they are a super power. We cannot match them in terms of military might, talagang hindi nating kakayanin ang China, superpower," said Ejercito.

"So we cannot match them in terms of military strength but we have to exhaust all diplomatic means possible legal and diplomatic means to fight for our territories, fight for our sovereignty," he added.

Five features in the Philippine Rise were officially given Chinese names: Jinghao Seamount, Tianbao Seamount, Haidonquing Seamount, Cuiqiao Hill and Jujiu Seamount.

China's application to the IHO claimed it "discovered" three of the features during a 2004 survey by the Li Shiguang Hao of the China Navy Hydrographic Office.

The two other features were claimed by China in a separate application two years later in 2016, saying they were "discovered" by the same ship during the same survey in 2004.

Ejercito added he had been "apprehensive" of the government's decision to allow parties from China to conduct research in the Benham Rise, saying it may have been a "mistake."

Last week, Agriculture Secretary Manny Piñol said that President Rodrigo Duterte had ordered a stop to marine research in Behnam Rise by foreigners.

The president had also warned that he might order the Philippine Navy to fight foreigners if they take anything from Benham Rise, a 13-million-hectare extended continental shelf in the Philippine Sea located off Aurora province which is seen as a potential source of oil, natural gas and other marine resources.

Batongbacal, however, said that no foreign research teams will be affected by Duterte's order as their maritime studies seem to have been completed. — BM, GMA News