China confirms ongoing work at Mabini Reef, but scoffs at PH protest vs airstrip

From InterAksyon (May 14): China confirms ongoing work at Mabini Reef, but scoffs at PH protest vs airstrip

China has rejected the Philippine protest over the apparent construction of an airstrip on Mabini Reef (also known as Johnson South Reef) in the disputed Spratly Islands in the South China Sea, the Department of Foreign Affairs said Wednesday, even as Beijing virtually confirmed there was ongoing work at the place, which it added was none of Manila's business anyway. Malacanang Palace nonetheless said Manila will refrain from escalating tensions and sticks to the multilateral approach for resolving conflicts in the developing flashpoint.

The Philippine protest, as well as its rejection, was revealed a day after Washington described Beijing's recent actions in the region as "provocative."

According to the DFA one-paragraph statement released Wednesday, the Philippines has known since April 4 this year about China's reclamation activities on Mabini Reef.

“The Philippines protested Chinese reclamation on Mabini (Johnson) Reef. The Chinese side rejected the protest,” the DFA said.

“The President raised the Mabini Reef issue in Nay Pyi Taw (in Myanmar during the ASEAN leaders summit),” it said.

At the same time, the Philippines included Mabini Reef in its Memorial submitted before the United Nations arbitral body hearing the case on the Panatay Shoal (Scarborough) in Zambales. The memorial sought “to clarify Mabini Reef’s physical character. “

China confirms ongoing work, but scoffs at PH

China has confirmed construction activities are ongoing at the Mabini Reef (Johnson South Reef) in the West Philippine Sea, but declined to say exactly for what the project is, only asserting that as the area is Chinese territory, it was none of Manila’s business what happens there.

At a regular press briefing Wednesday, Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying, would not confirm the Philippine claim about an air strip being built, but asserted the outcrop was Chinese territory.

"Whatever construction China carries out on the reef is a matter entirely within the scope of China's sovereignty. I don't know what particular intentions the Philippines has in caring so much about this," she said at a regular press briefing Wednesday.

Last week, the Chinese press downplayed the activity at the reef, saying it was merely to renovate the living facilities for troops stationed there
"We can confirm that there is ongoing reclamation or earthmoving activities in that portion,"  spokesman Peter Galvez of the Department of National defemse told reporters Wednesday.

"It has been getting bigger and bigger."

If confirmed, the airstrip would be the first built by China on any of the eight reefs and islands it occupies in the Spratly Islands and would mark a significant escalation in tensions involving several nations in the area.

China claims almost the entire South China Sea, an area rich in energy deposits and an important passageway traversed each year by $5 trillion worth of ship-borne goods.

Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan, and Vietnam also have claims on the area.

‘A violation of Declaration on Conduct’

Earlier, Philippine Foreign ministry spokesman Charles Jose told Reuters that China had been moving earth and materials to Mabini Reef, known by the Chinese as Chigua, in recent weeks. He said China was reclaiming land in violation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea, an informal code of conduct for the region also known as DOC. "They're about to build an airstrip," Jose said.

He said evidence of the Chinese activity on the reef had been shown in aerial photographs taken by the Philippine Navy. The Philippines and Taiwan already have airstrips in the area.

The ministry had already lodged a protest with the Chinese and raised the issue behind closed doors at last weekend's summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in Myanmar, Jose said.

‘Reclamation and earthmoving activities’

“Ang puwede nating i-confirm (What we can confirm) is that there is ongoing reclamation or earthmoving activities in that portion…Hindi ko lang alam yung exact laki niya. ‘Yung iba kasi sinasabi 500 meters, ‘yung iba [ang] sabi 300 meters, tapos sinasabi 300 by 300 (I don’t know the exact size.  Some say it’s 500 meters, others say 300 meters, and still others 300 by 300),” Defense spokesman Peter Paul Galvez  said.

 “The department confirms the observation or the ongoing reclamation or earthmoving activities in said area,” he added.

Galvez said the construction could be an airstrip but refused to speculate further.

When did China start construction? “They have existing structure that has been there for several years already...May luma silang structure dun (They have old structures there) but now we observed sometime early this year, January or February, we observed palaki na ng palaki e (it’s become bigger and bigger),” he said.

He said his office got the data from the Philippine military’s maritime patrol missions.

Asked about the impact of this construction to the security and stability and security of the Kalayaan Group of Islands?

“Huwag muna tayo siguro pumunta dun kasi assessment yan e, i-confirm na lang muna (Let’s not go to the assessement, let’s just confirm the construction),” he said.

A military official agreed with Jose and said the construction “is a violation of the DOC. It specifies that no new structures should be built. This is a clear violation of the DOC. This is an outright violation of the DOC.”

“We have kept and will keep to it, as we have done in the past, we will keep to our promises under the agreement entered into together with other regional partners and we hope that they do the same,” said the security official who requested that he not be named because he is not authorized to speak on the matter.

Palace keeps multilateral approach

Meanwhile, Malacanang on Wednesday maintained that the Philippines prefers a multilateral approach to address the problem on China’s alleged construction activities in a reef in a disputed West Philippine Sea.

“Our position is we do not want to escalate any tension between China and the Philippines,” said Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda in a Palace press briefing.

Lacierda said Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin informed him “what appears to be a reclamation project” being constructed by China in the Mabini Reef.

He said President Benigno S. Aquino III insisted on multilateral discussion rather than a bilateral dialogue to resolve the dispute, as there are more than two claimant countries to the western offshore waters.

“Emphatically, the President has always said that we prefer a multilateral dialogue consistent with international law, consistent with the rule of law, consistent also with the Declaration on the Conduct of (Parties in the) South China Sea where there has been an emphasis on the provisions on not escalating any further tensions and also, not disrupting the status quo,” Lacierda stressed.

Lacierda said that consistent with the international rule of law, the country will resort to arbitration deemed effective means to resolve the dispute.
”We have obviously taken a diplomatic protest. And we believe that our resort to taking national dispute resolution would have an effective means of resolving this dispute in a peaceful manner and also evoke a support from the international community. As we have seen, several countries have already voiced their support to the diplomatic path that we have taken,” he noted.

Further, Lacierda noted provisions covering activities in the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea, which was crafted with the member states of ASEAN as well as the Chinese government. Under such provisions, said Lacierda, parties must undertake to exercise self-restraint in the conduct of activities that would complicate or escalate disputes and affect peace and stability.

”Including, among others, refraining from any action of inhabiting the presently uninhabited islands, reefs, shoals, cays, and other features, and to handle their differences in a constructive manner,” he added.

High tension in South China Sea

Tensions in the South China Sea were already high after China moved a large oil rig into an area also claimed by Vietnam. Beijing and Hanoi each accused the other of ramming its ships near the disputed Paracel Islands,
On Tuesday, Kerry said during a phone call with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi that China's introduction of the oil rig and numerous government vessels into the area disputed with Vietnam was "provocative," a State Department spokeswoman confirmed.

China in turn said there had indeed been provocative action taken in the area but that it was not the guilty party, with the foreign ministry blaming the United States for encouraging such behavior. The ministry said Wang had urged Kerry to "act and speak cautiously."

Beijing says the South China Sea issue should be resolved by direct talks between those involved and has bristled at what it sees as unwarranted US interference.

It has also looked askance at the US "pivot" back to Asia, especially Washington's efforts to boost existing military links with Tokyo and Manila.

The remote and otherwise unremarkable Johnson South Reef has been a catalyst for conflict in the past. In March 1988, China and Vietnam fought a brief naval skirmish on and around the reef with up to 90 Vietnamese reported killed.

China has been aggressively enforcing its “nine-dash line” claims which overlap their neighbors’ 200-nautical mile exclusive economic zone (EEZ) such as those in the West Philippine Sea (SEA).

Over the past couple of years, China has established its position in Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal in Masinloc, Zambales and Ayungin Reef in Spratlys.

Over the Panatag dispute, Manila has challenged Beijing to prove its territorial claims before an arbitral court of the United Nations in the hope of peacefully settling the dispute.

http://www.interaksyon.com/article/86769/china-confirms-ongoing-work-at-mabini-reef-but-scoffs-at-ph-protest-vs-airstrip