Arbitral Tribunal to hold 2nd round of arguments on South China Sea case on July 13

From InterAksyon (Jul 11): Arbitral Tribunal to hold 2nd round of arguments on South China Sea case on July 13



The Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague, after meeting on Friday following two days of presentations by the Phililppine panel, has decided to hold a second round of arguments on jurisdiction and admissibility of Manila's complaint over the South China Sea.

"The Philippines received word that the Arbitral Tribunal will conduct a second round of arguments on the issue of jurisdiction, Deputy Presidential Spokesperson Abigail Valte said in her fifth bulletin on developments in the case.

"The Philippine side has undertaken sufficient preparation to ensure that the best answers will be provided to the questions expected to be propounded by the Tribunal during the second round," Valte added.

The second round of arguments is scheduled on July 13, 2015.

Palace defends PHL delegation to The Hague

In Manila, Malacanang on Friday came to the defense of the Philippines delegation to The Hague, Netherlands from critics who described some delegates as being simply on a junket.

Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. said the arbitration case filed against China’s massive reclamation at the West Philippine Sea was an important issue that requires enough support from all sectors.

”Since it is a very important issue that we brought before the Permanent Court on Arbitration, we need to show what we call ‘whole of government approach,” Coloma said an interview with Radyo 5.

”All the branches of the government showed their support, not only the executive but even the legislative and judiciary,” he said.

Coloma also said the government was glad that even National Democratic Front (NDF) founding chairman Joma Sison had expressed support for the Philippines’ arbitration case against China.

”Under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, the executive economic zone is recognized, including the continental shelf,” Coloma said.

”We know that it (WPS) is surrounded by areas which are rich in natural resources and unfortunately, the massive reclamation obviously damages the coral reefs which are very important for marine life in the area,” he added.

On the concerns aired by Senator Ralph Recto that P200 million in fish catch would be lost daily if China decides to ban fishing in the area, Coloma said the Philippines was determined to improve the maritime domain awareness of the WPS.

Coloma said the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) and Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) were conducting regular patrols to protect the fishing areas.

http://www.interaksyon.com/article/113966/arbitral-tribunal-to-hold-2nd-round-of-arguments-on-south-china-sea-case-on-july-13