Sotto asserts Philippines’ sovereignty over West Philippine Sea: ‘Never shut up’

Senate President Vicente Sotto III on Tuesday encouraged the Philippine government to continue asserting its sovereign authority over its exclusive economic zone in the South China Sea despite China's refusal to accept the 2016 ruling which invalidated its massive claims in the resource-rich waters.

"We should never give up the fight for what is legally ours. We should never cower in fear from the harassment and political intimidation that foreign governments impose on us," Sotto said in a statement.

He added that the Filipino people should prove its common desire to protect the country's "sovereign jurisdiction."

"What is unlawful can never be made lawful by the whims and caprices of a foreign power which treats the entire South China Sea as its territory. We shall never and should not shut up into giving up our offshore treasures," Sotto said.

Four years after an international court in The Hague, Netherlands handed down the ruling in favor of the Philippines, Foreign Affairs Teodoro Locsin Jr. urged China to comply and recognize the country's claims in the West Philippine Sea.

But China continued to reject the decision, calling it "illegal and invalid."

Senator Risa Hontiveros also slammed China's "blatant disrespect" of the Philippines' sovereignty.

"China should respect our victory at The Hague, pay for the damages in the West Philippine Sea, and get off our waters and off our islands," she said in a Facebook post.

The United States likewise expressed solidarity with Southeast Asian nations who are involved with territorial disputes with China.

A recent survey conducted by the Social Weather Stations showed that seven out of 10 Filipinos believe the Philippine government must assert its rights over the disputed islands in the West Philippine Sea. — BM, GMA News