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Filipino intransigence rocks the peace boat

While official investigations of the Philippine Coast Guard shooting of an unarmed Taiwanese fishing boat in May 2013 proceed apace, the geo-political implications of the incident are already emerging.

The first implication is that the Philippine Government has acted precipitously and violently, casting suspicion on its ability to manage its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and interface with its neighbours sensitively.

Whether the shooting was authorised or rogue, the damage is done, a citizen of the Republic of China Taiwan has been killed, and Manila’s reputation for reliability and moderation has been undermined.

Reasonable framework

Second and related, the Republic of China (ROC Taiwan) had already provided a reasonable framework for resolution in President Ma Yong-jeou’s 2012 East China Sea Peace Initiative. This calls on all parties concerned to replace confrontation with dialogue, shelve territorial disputes through negotiations, formulate a Code of Conduct in the East China Sea and engage in joint development of resources.

Its relevance for the South China Sea disputes is clear but not acknowledged by the Philippine Government.

Third, the tragedy could have been averted if the Philippine Government had signed a Fishing Agreement proposed by the ROC to acknowledge the overlapping of the two countries’ EEZs and stressing a mutual interest in resolving fishing disputes in a peaceful manner. Negotiating and signing a Fishing Agreement is now more urgent than ever.

Negative implications

Fourth, the implications for foreign fishing fleets of Southeast Asia and India are negative, because their boats are now at greater risk from Philippine over-reaction. The Governments concerned should consider seeking assurances from Manila that their boats are safe, and to negotiate fresh fishing agreements along the lines of the ROC proposal.

Fifth, the use of excessive and unnecessary armed force by the Philippine vessel against the unarmed Guang Da Xing No.28 boat not only violated the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS 1982) but also contravened the customary international law principles of proportionality and discrimination.

Unless Manila issues a full apology and compensation, punishes the perpetrators, and takes steps to prevent recurrence, including a Fishing Agreement with the ROC, the armed over-reaction will stand as a precedent, undermining faith in the law, and suggesting that other parties could use force with impunity.

The consequences

This will make maritime territorial disputes more difficult to resolve peacefully and jeopardise regional stability.

Finally, the first use of gunfire since the clash between ships of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam makes the international sea-lanes of Asia a more dangerous place.

If repeated, shipping may divert to other routes, insurance premiums will rise, and commerce will suffer. Furthermore, the US Navy, committed to the principle of freedom of the seas, may be obliged to intervene.

The possibility of a confrontation of US and PRC warships is imaginable in either the South China Sea or the East China Sea, where the Diaoyutai Island dispute between the PRC and Japan is escalating.

In short, moderation is in the interest of all disputants and a framework for peaceful management of the disputes must be established to prevent violence in future.

Such a framework could be modelled on President Ma’s East China Sea Peace Initiative. The details of this Initiative are to be discussed by academics and officials at a Forum in Taipei in August and disputing governments would be well advised to take note of the Forum’s recommendations.

Stephen Hoadley is Associate Professor of Political Studies at the University of Auckland. He has studied international affairs of Asia for 40 years and published a book titled, ‘Asian Security Reassessed’ in 2006. He recently visited Taiwan organised by the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office, Auckland, the ROC Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Overseas Chinese Cultural and Educational Foundation, Taipei.

Source: Government of the ROC (Taiwan)

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