DND stresses Philippines' lawful maritime operations over Bajo De Masinloc

The Department of National Defense (DND) on Thursday stressed that the Philippines had been conducting lawful and routine maritime operations over Bajo de Masinloc.

The statement followed after China said the Philippines’ operations were a “self-directed farce.”

In a statement on Thursday, DND Spokesperson Arsenio Andolong said that it was China who had been conducting “the real farce” after calling for peaceful engagement despite hostile actions against fisherfolk in the region.

“The PRC’s illegal, coercive, aggressive, and deceptive activities in the West Philippine Sea are accurately documented and communicated to the public. The PRC is to blame for the world’s growing awareness of the cognitive illusion that it is trying to create in order to cover up the reputational damage it is inflicting upon itself,” he said.

He also said he was not surprised that China had assailed the Philippines’ transparency strategy.

“Transparency is abhorred by those who twist the truth and manipulate narratives to legitimize their unlawful acts and baseless claims,” he said.

Earlier, China had claimed that they had never claimed the entirety of the South China Sea and that it was only the Philippines deliberately distorting their position.

Despite this, they continued to insist that “Huangyan Dao” was their territory.

“China's decision not to accept or participate in the arbitration is precisely intended to safeguard the authority of international law, including the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)," the Chinese Embassy in Manila said in its statement on March 17.

"The experience of the past decade has demonstrated that 'arbitration' has not resolved the disputes between China and the Philippines; rather, it has exacerbated bilateral tensions. China will not accept any claim or action based on the so-called 'award',” it added.

“The Philippine side has neither reason nor right to demand that China accept the 'award,' nor does it have the right to assert claims in the South China Sea on the basis of that 'award',” the embassy said. –NB, GMA Integrated News