PH tells China: Back off from Panganiban Reef

From the Manila Bulletin (Feb 7): PH tells China: Back off from Panganiban Reef

For the third time this week, the Philippines handed a protest note to China – this time over reclamation activities being undertaken by China at Panganiban Reef.

The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) handed the note verbale to the Chinese Embassy in Manila last Wednesday.

The DFA conveyed its strong protest on China’s reclamation activities in the said area saying it constitutes a “flagrant violation of these rights and increase tensions in the region.”

“We strongly urge China to desist from its reclamation activities at Panganiban Reef, to respect international law, specifically the UNCLOS and its dispute settlement mechanisms, and to exerc ise self-restraint in the conduct of activities pursuant to the 2002 Association of Southeast Asian Nations) ASEAN-China Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC),” the DFA said in a statement.

In an interview with Reuters, Rear Admiral Alexander Lopez, commander of the AFP Western Command said the reclamation work at Panganiban Reef had been “substantial.”

Surveillance photos taken of Panganiban Reef last October showed no reclamation work in the area. The photos shown to Reuters during a visit this week showed two structures that include a three-storey building sitting on an atoll equipped with wind turbines and solar panels.

Panganiban Reef is a low-tide elevation located 250 kilometers west of the coast of Palawan which puts it inside the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of the Philippines and on its continental shelf, said the DFA in a statement issued Friday night.

http://www.mb.com.ph/ph-tells-china-back-off-from-panganiban-reef/