MANILA, Philippines — Aside from filing a diplomatic protest against China, the Philippines should also demand compensation after it rammed two Philippine-flagged vessels in Sabina Shoal, Sen. Francis Tolentino said Wednesday.
What happened in the maritime region was “unacceptable”, said Tolentino, and that the Department of Foreign Affairs should lodge a diplomatic protest over the incident.
“The Philippines should also file a claim for damages,”Tolentino said in a TeleRadyo interview.
“Under Part 15 of UNCLOS (United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea), the owner of the ship, whether state-owned or private, can be held accountable for what happened,”
Tolentino said he plans to propose creating a specialized team of lawyers for maritime cases during the budget hearing for the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) and the Department of Justice (DOJ). He expects such cases to become more common in the future.”
He called on President Marcos Jr. to convene with the National Security Council since the latest collision with the China Coast Guard was an “aggravated action.”
“The convening of the NSC will allow the country to formulate a more focused response. We can get the opinion of the Coast Guard, Philippine Navy, and DFA. This [incident involves] one of the highest forms of aggravated maritime intentional allision and collision,” Tolentino said.
Chinese Coast Guard reportedly rammed two Philippine Coast Guard vessels BRP Cape Engano and BRP Bagacay in the wee hours of August 19 which led to structural damage according to the National Security Council.
Tolentino hits Beijing
The lawmaker pointed out that the incident raised doubts about China’s sincerity and commitment to the Bilateral Consultative Meeting (BCM) mechanism with the Philippines.
“China must show its sincerity in negotiating with the Philippines. We just concluded the talks on Ayungin Shoal, and this happened,” he said.
The DFA said exactly a month ago that the Philippines and China have agreed on a “provisional arrangement” in the rotation and resupply missions to the BRP Sierra Madre in Ayungin Shoal and that both sides agreed that they “will not prejudice each other’s position in the South China Sea.”
It also said that both nations recognized the need to “de-escalate” the situation in the West Philippine Sea and engage through dialogue and consultation. But China remains consistent in deploying military vessels in the disputed waters and in conducting intrusive patrols in the maritime region.
Following the RORE agreement where “de-escalation” has been discussed, China has fired eight rounds of flares at a Philippine Air Force plane conducting an aerial inspection in the West Philippine Sea.
