China continued its disinformation campaign against the Philippines Friday, claiming that Manila was not really conducting humanitarian missions in the West Philippine Sea, but merely creating incidents in the waters that Beijing illegally claims.
Wu Qian, spokesman for China’s Defense Department, said he did not believe the Philippines’ resupply missions were real because the “supply vessels carried many journalists and propagated disinformation.”
“In my view, this is not humanitarian supply at all, it is to deliberately create an incident, play victim and make a show in the name of humanitarian supply,” Wu said.
The Chinese military official’s allegation came after the Philippines had for multiple times protested China’s actions against Philippine vessels conducting humanitarian missions in the West Philippine Sea, including water cannon attacks and laser-pointing.
Despite the incidents being captured on camera and witnessed by journalists, Wu said Manila’s protests against Beijing were just “groundless accusation” and “false hype.”
He also falsely claimed that the Philippines intruded into Chinese waters and “provocatively rammed” a larger Chinese vessel, and “caused a scratch.”
“Such behavior is very dangerous and extremely unprofessional,” Wu said.
“The China Coast Guard took necessary enforcement measures in accordance with law, which were totally justified and legitimate,” he said, ignoring a UN tribunal’s decision that China’s extensive claims to the South China Sea have no legal basis.
On the reported laser-pointing, Wu said: “This is [an] entirely groundless accusation” and China has no intention to use such devices.
“China is always committed to resolving differences through dialogue and consultation and making joint efforts to maintain maritime stability,” he said.
But Wu also warned that China will not turn a blind eye towards the Philippines’ actions.
Meanwhile, a maritime law expert urged President Marcos to file “an entitlement to a continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles in the West Philippines Sea (WPS)” before a United Nations commission amid China’s aggression in claiming parts of the area.
“It is not ‘a claim for territorial ownership’ but a ‘submission to establish entitlement to a continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles’ in the WPS,” said the director of the University of the Philippines Institute for Maritime Affairs and Law of the Sea, Jay Batongbacal.
Batongbacal said the submission can be filed before the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea’s Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (UN-CLCS).
He said he made the same recommendation to the past administrations under Presidents Benigno Aquino III and Rodrigo Duterte but no action was taken.
But the Philippines had filed a similar submission before the commission in the case of Benham Rise.
In April 2012, the UN commission granted the Benham Rise to the Philippines as an extension of the country’s continental shelf, some 350 nautical miles from the nation’s shore.
On Thursday, the National Security Council (NSC) welcomed the latest OCTA survey which showed that the majority of adult Filipinos agree with the Marcos administration’s approach in handling the territorial dispute with China in the WPS.
The survey showed a 15 percent increase in public support for the administration on the issue.
“We appreciate the support of the Filipino people and the public can be assured that the NSC will always advance the national interest and protect our sovereignty and territorial integrity at all times,” National Security Adviser Eduardo Año said in a statement.
The survey results showed that the Filipinos consider the WPS as a major concern and that “the lives and livelihood of our people, especially the fishers who depend on the seas, are primordial concerns that cannot be taken for granted.”
The OCTA survey also revealed that most Filipinos feel the country’s foreign and security policies, including strengthening its ties with partners, allies and friends, are on the right track.
Año, who chairs the NSC, also said the Philippines shall pursue its national interest with greater resolve in the coming year.
Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) spokesperson Col. Medel Aguilar also expressed satisfaction over the survey finding.
“We are moving towards the right direction, one that promotes the interest of our people and strengthens international laws and conventions that contribute to regional peace and stability. With the support of our people, (we) will never be distracted from this course,” he said.