(Eagle News) — The Philippine government should avoid “careless talk” regarding the South China Sea maritime dispute so that it would not be mistaken as a waiver on the country’s part of the July 2016 arbitral ruling, according to Acting Chief Justice Antonio Carpio.
“We want to be very careful that we do not waive the award because of careless talk,” Carpio said in a roundtable discussion on Friday, Nov. 23.
“The award will be there, for as long as we do not waive the award or renounce the award,” he explained.
His comment came after the state visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping who had promised to work on the Code of Conduct on the South China Sea and finish this within three years through friendly consultation among the stakeholders in the region.
Earlier, on Tuesday, Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo said the arbitral ruling could not be enforced as of now, but stressed that it was a ruling that “cannot be taken away from us.”
“The arbitral ruling cannot be taken away from us. It will be there forever. But meanwhile, who will enforce it? There is no power on earth presently that can enforce it. The United Nations cannot. The U.S. cannot. Who will enforce it?” he said in a press briefing.
Panelo said that although the Hague ruling cannot be enforced for now, it benefited the Philippines “psychologically.”
“Psychologically, it benefits us. Because as far as the world is concerned, this (West Philippine Sea) is ours, not theirs (China),” Panelo added.