Skip to main content

Embarrassing Pull Out

THE THING WITH the latest pull out of the Philippine military vessels from the disputed Panatag Shoal gives me a feeling that we have embarassed ourselves for getting duped into withdrawing from standing put in defending that claim.

The current statement from the Chinese foreign ministry seems to say that the Philippines has the only responsibility to keep the tension down in the area; not the overreaching China. Somehow China managed to stand pat on its stubbornness in "defending" what is "hers" from the Philippine claim. If the Philippine politicians fail to get the message, then we as well admit our claim as much weaker (of low resolve) compared to that of China.

Imagine leaving the Panatag Shoal on the excuse of protecting the government military vessels from bad weather. That's hollow-sounding to me considering that Chinese policy considers such a move a non-issue on their part. So much for our resolve to claim what is rightfully ours. And I believe that the Panatag Shoal is ours to claim. It's just that our resolve to defend it from other claimants, especially China, seems to waver with the weather in or off season, whether for the reason of fear of confrontation or whatever.

If we are really serious in our claim then, our resolve to stay put in that disputed area must be as strong if not stronger that of China who is many miles away from that area as we are. If we need to prepare militarily to an eventually armed solution, then we should. But let us not shame ourselves by our actions. If the Japanese labelled the Chinese during the Second World War as the "Sick Man of Asia," looks like that humbling title has been applied to the Filipinos this time by China herself without even uttering a word for it.

I could imagine that it could have been better had both the Philippine and Chinese vessels stayed inside the Shoal to protect itself from the hard weather if that had been serious enough to consider a pull out. The blame should on who took the first shot.

At the end of the day, the Philippines will have to look at the probability of having to prepare for the worst in this dispute--a military solution, I mean, when the tension in Panatag Shoal continue to be put on our doorstep by China. If we cannot stand the heat then perhaps let us take the heat home, and let go of the Shoal.

UPDATES

China created Shansha City to administer the islands they claimed in the West Philippine Sea. [Read report]

Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin warned: "If you don't populate the area or fill it with your presence, they will invoke 'occupancy.' They are there; and that's what they will use to support their claim." [Read report]
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

"Elite" Cry-Babies?

I CANNOT IMAGINE how an operative of the Special Counter-Insurgency Operations Unit (SCOU), when caught by insurgents and subjective to the worse torture imaginable, can ever survive with their mental faculties intact. But that's exactly what's going to happen if the recent products of SCOU Training cry foul, or more specifically 'hazing,' when they are subjected to the hard realities of law enforcent that handles counterinsurgency operations. Operatives must be physically hard and mentally sturdy to survive the prospect of getting captured without squelling reserved information to the enemy. I am disappointed to hear that the recent batch of SCOUT trainees considered their physical ordeals during training as 'hazing.' Have they entertained the thought that they were in Camp Ceferino Genovia in Barangay Bahay for an exotic 45-day vacation? If they cannot endure physical pain during training, they must ship out because real life counterinsurgency work ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Separatist Tactic Unraveled

A RECENT INCIDENT in Davao City revealed the sneaky tactic that Muslim separatists use in claiming more and more lands in Mindanao as "their ancestral" land. Vice Mayor Rodrigo Duterte ordered on November 17 members of the Moro National Liberation Front-National Elite Security Unit to vacate areas in Sitio Agdao, Talomo and Mintal, which they claim as a land of their ancestors. True to form they have started harrassing those who are living there in order to have the place for themselves. This was not the first time in Mindanao. (By God, even nations around the world had similar problems with creeping Muslim communities amidst them that can become breeding nests for terrorist operatives.) Provinces like the Zamboangas also noted this kind of creeping dominion; although in certain areas families and relatives of separatists did the subtle presence in certain areas where they later would show no plan to leave. Good that in Davao City they  have a Dutert...
Post a Comment
Read more

Gifts of Discounts

SECTION 13 of the New Code of Philippine Judicial Conduct (27 April 2004) stated: Judges and members of their families shall neither ask for nor receive any gift, bequest, loan, or favor in relation to anything done or to be done or omitted to be done by him or her in connection with the performance of judicial duties. Its annotation explains that: Public officials and employees shall not solicit or accept, directly or indirectly, any gift, gratuity, favor, entertainment, loan or anything of money value from any person in the course of their official duties or in connection with any operation being regulated by, or any transaction which may be affected by the functions of their office." The key phrase here is--"in the course of their official duties." It means that as long as a judge remains a judge of Philippine courts, this Code applies, prohibiting any receipt, directly or indirectly, from any person. The question then is: Is a discount a gift? ...
Post a Comment
Read more