An Archepelago of small islands, with the biggest at approximately 37.2 hectares and islet that shows on and off as the tide rises and decline. An archipelago that the Philippines once claimed-a part only, then neglected until a giant economy wants to take it by whole.
Spartlys Group of Islands is located at the South China Sea-now called as West Philippine Sea, is composed of 750 reefs, islets, atolls, cays and islands. Nearest to the Philippines is the Kalayaan Group, inhabited by Filipinos and is approximately 194 miles from the shores of Palawan. Other ‘part’ and whole claimants were Brunei which based their claim on their 200 mile EEZ, Taiwan, Vietnam, Malaysia and China.
The Claimants.
Nansha Islands as what the Spratly is known to the Chinese. Their claim is based on an map with a ‘9-dash line’ that asserts its teritorial claim over the whole of the South China Sea. The map was first used to challenged the claim made by Vietnam and Malaysia over their extended continental shelves on the said body of water. Aside from the said map, they also base their claim on historical manuscripts stating their ownership-which the Chinese written by themselves, and on artifacts found on the islands.
Vietnam claims the archipelago as part of the empire of Annam in the 19th century. Also, during the French colonization, in 1933, French annexed the Spratlys, making it part of their possessions. Vietnam says the islands are theirs as they are the inheritors of the French. In 1973 they declared that Spratlys were part of the Phuoc Tuy province. For Vietnamese, the archipelago is known to them as Truong Sa Islands.
Malaysia’s claim is based on the conviction that the islands are situated on its continental shelf, within its declared exclusive economic zone, security and its proximity to the mainland. Their involvement in the dispute started on 1979. Currently, they hold three of the islands, yet wants to claim the whole chain in the southern part of the Spratly.
Taiwan’s claim is based on historical manuscript. They assert that its Kuomintang government and Taiwan itself are the true China, and the Spartlys were discovered by Chinese navigators, fished by Chinese fishermen and under the administration of China since the 15th century. And on their assertion being the true China, they believe that the archipelago belongs to them and not to the People’s Republic of China. The above happenings were also part of the China’s basis in claiming the authority of said archipelago.
Philippines claim is only on the Kalayaan Group, which is within the 200 miles Exclusive Eeconomic Zone under the UN Commission on Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) to which the Philippines is a signatory. Philippines laid its legal ownership claim thru Admiral Thomas Cloma who surveyed the whole area and named it Freedomland. The island group was totally desolated and uninhabited during the survey, that was 1956. President Marcos then issued Presidential Decree making the said group of islands a municipality of Palawan. Afterwhich, residents flocked inhabiting the islands. The basis of the Philippine claim are the following: discovery, occupation, the law and the UNCLOS.
What’s on Spratly?
The dispute on Spratly Islands rested on the bounty of the natural resources underneath. Natural gas deposits were identified on the ocean floor of the said archipelago. China estimated that the natural gas reserve could brought up billions to trillions of US dollars. The US estimate was lower to that of China’s considering the deep water conditions and geology of the ocean floor. Aside from the natural gas reserve, the archipelago is also rich in natural resources. These resources have garnered attention throughout the Asia-Pacific region.
Solving the Dispute.
Philippines will not win if it will fight China in a shooting war. China is an economic giant and Philippines is a midget. The Government should internationalize the Spratlys issue in the United Nations, in the International Court of Justice or in any other international court. Philippines claim is on a solid ground. We only want to claim the Kalayaan group which is within the 200m EEZ, we don’t want to claim the whole as what China is doing.
