Privilege speech of Senator Risa Hontiveros on West Philippine Sea
Mr. President, I rise today on a point of personal and collective privilege.
Nitong nakaraang linggo lamang, inatake nanaman ng Tsina ang ating tropa sa Bajo de Masinloc sa West Philippine Sea ng napakalakas nilang high-pressure jet stream water cannon.
Dear colleagues, according to our Philippine Coast Guard, China used water cannons that could kill. Deadly. Nakakamatay.
China fired at vessels of the Philippine Coast Guard and BFAR, fully intending to target and disable their navigation and communications equipment.
The Department of Foreign Affairs is also currently investigating videos showing how a China Coast Guard vessel targeted the Philippine flag hoisted on the PCG ship, BRP Bagacay.
Just last month, China’s Coast Guard, again through their potentially lethal water cannons, injured four of our Philippine Navy crew, who were simply conducting their routine resupply missions to the BRP Sierra Madre on Ayungin Shoal.
Mr. President, dear colleagues, the series of attacks only shows that the Chinese government appears committed to achieving through the unlawful use of force, what it cannot achieve by international law.
Handa nilang saktan ang ating kababayan. Handa nilang bastusin ang ating soberanya.
Ilang beses na po natin naipahayag ang ating galit sa paulit-ulit na pang-aabuso. Sa totoo lang, hindi ko na maintindihan ang mga Pilipinong pinipili pa ring maliitin ang sitwasyon. Mga Pilipinong nagbubulag-bulagan sa lantarang pang-aalipusta ng Tsina.
At higit pa dito, ang mas lalong hindi ko maintindihan: Yung mga nakikipagkasundo sa Beijing bakit di nananagot? Bakit walang parusa para sa kanila? Pati ba yan babalewalain?
Recently, the Chinese Embassy in Manila alleged that under a Duterte administration “Gentleman’s Agreement,” the Philippines agreed that our vessels and aircraft would refrain from coming closer than 12 nautical miles from Panatag or Scarborough Shoal, just over 120 nautical miles away from mainland Zambales, and well within our exclusive economic zone.
The Chinese Embassy also alleges that the Duterte administration likewise entered into another “Gentleman’s Agreement” to not repair or build structures at Ayungin shoal.
If true, these were also agreements that were kept secret… and hidden away from the Filipino people.
Mr. President, dear colleagues, kaya po natin inihain ang Proposed Senate Resolution No. 984 para imbestigahan itong di umanong “Gentleman’s Agreement” sa pagitan ng administrasyong Duterte at ng gobyerno ng Tsina.
I have done so because these are serious – potentially divisive – allegations.
These are serious because the first “Gentleman’s Agreement” effectively diminishes our sovereignty by conceding a “no-go” zone for Philippine ships and aircraft inside our own EEZ, as well as the unlawful occupation of Panatag Shoal by a foreign power.
The second risks our tenuous toehold in Ayungin. If we do not repair and reinforce the BRP Sierra Madre, it will fall to wind and wave, and
with it our control of Reed Bank – which may hold as much as 5.4 billion barrels of oil and 55.1 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.
Why is it important that the Senate exercises oversight over this “Gentlemen’s Agreement” kahit na sa nakaraang administrasyon pa ito?
Because it will have implications moving forward. Kakapasa lang natin ng Maritime Zones Law which delineates our maritime domains.
Can a past President surrender our right to fortify installations within these domains?
These are questions that the legislature needs to understand and wrestle with.
Nakasalalay po dito ang napakaraming likas-yamang iningatan at inilagaan ng ating mga ninuno para ipamana sa bawat henerasyon ng Pilipino.
Papayagan ba natin na kunin lang ito? Papayagan ba natin na walang matira sa Pilipinas?
Sabi ng iba, dapat hindi na ito pinag-uusapan dahil stratehiya lang ito ng Tsina para mag-away-away tayong mga Pilipino.
Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro, Jr. stated that we might be falling into a trap set by China to divert attention from her unlawful activities in Philippine waters.
Sure, considering how two-faced Beijing can be, baka nga gusto lang tayong watak-watakin ng Tsina. Baka nga isa lang ito sa mga plano niya. Perhaps this is all just smoke and mirrors.
And indeed, I would like to believe that a Philippine President – any Philippine President – would not be capable of selling our country out in such a manner.
However, we have heard conflicting reports as to whether an agreement was reached. Iba-iba ang mga sinasabi. Ang gulo. Hindi na natin alam kung ano ang totoo.
Last Saturday, the Chinese Embassy also released another statement claiming that China has reached another “agreement” with no less than Philippine government agencies – namely the Armed Forces of the Philippines, the Department of National Defense, and the National Security Council – on a supposed “new model” of engagement over the entire South China Sea.
NSC Assistant Director Jonathan Malaya has quashed this statement, stressing that this is yet another “invention” of the People’s Republic of China.
In this information warfare that China wields to her advantage, it becomes even more crucial that we get to the truth.
If something has been concealed from the Filipino people, let us bring it to light. If the Chinese government is lying through its teeth, let us expose those lies.
Mr. President, dear colleagues, the Chinese government claims the Philippines is being reckless, that it is our country that is inflaming the situation.
If I may be blunt, those are nothing but lies and deception. In its desire to be perceived as a superpower and a regional hegemon, the Chinese government seems has decided to walk a path of escalation and provocation – a strategy anchored on force and coercion.
It is the Chinese government using unlawful force to deliberately damage our ships.
It is the Chinese government conducting dangerous maneuvers and ramming our vessels.
It is the Chinese government destroying fragile coral reef ecosystems through the actions of its maritime militia and the construction of artificial islands in the South Chinese Sea.
There are also reports of coral fragments being dumped in the sea between Pag-asa island and Subi reef with the apparent intent of creating an artificial low-tide elevation.
I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s the work of the Chinese government as well.
It is Chinese research vessels sneaking into our waters with their Automatic Identification Systems turned off, like thieves in the night.
It is Chinese vessels intruding into maritime exercises between our country’s Navy and those of our allies, in violation of a clear Notice to Mariners or NOTAM.
There must be an end to all of this. There must be an end to and a reversal of the Chinese militarization of the entire South China Sea that is inflaming the arms race in the region, threatening security and peace on our side of the world.
The South China Sea has to be de-militarized. And all bases on artificial islands, dismantled.
There must be an end to all the duplicity, the hypocrisy, the treachery.
Tsina ang nag-uumpisa ng lahat ng gulo – maliwanag na sa atin ito. Maliwanag na ito sa buong mundo. Pero hindi ibig sabihin na wala nang pananagutan ang sinumang traydor na Pilipino.
Yes, when it comes to the West Philippine Sea, when it comes to matters of national sovereignty, we must unite as one people.
However, Mr. President, dear colleagues, we cannot have genuine unity without accountability.
Our country would not be able to truly stand up to China if we ourselves cannot abide by basic virtues of integrity, honesty, and honor.
Unlike China who easily flexes her economic and military might to the fullest extent to pressure our neighbors to bend to her will, the Philippines does not.
Hindi natin ginagawa dahil hindi tayo diktadura. Hindi natin ginagawa dahil nirerespeto natin ang soberanya ng bawat bansa.
Hindi natin ginagawa dahil nananalig tayo sa diplomatikong paraan ng paggiit ng ating karapatan sa ating karagatan.
I remember Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi’s infamous statement at the 2010 ASEAN Regional Forum. He said, “China is a big country and other countries are small countries, and that’s just a fact.”
That’s a fact. We are a small country. China is big. We cannot match her ship for ship, plane for plane, dollar for dollar, nor do we want to.
Our best weapon is the truth: shining a light on the coercive tactics of the Chinese government in the West Philippine Sea — the oppression, harassment, and environmental destruction it has deliberately and violently employed as matters of policy.
Let us get to the heart of what the Chinese government claims is a “Gentleman’s Agreement,” and get to the truth by exposing the lies.
Ang katotohanan ang ating sandata. Ang katotohanan ang ating panangga sa kasinungalingan. Ang katotohanan ang magpapanalo ng ating laban.
-Privilege speech of Senator Risa Hontiveros on West Philippine Sea on May 6, 2024.
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