Sovereignty is the quality of having supreme, independent authority over a geographic area, such as a territory.

[1] It can be found in a power to rule and make law that rests on a political fact for which no pure legal definition can be provided. In theoretical terms, the idea of "sovereignty", historically, from Socrates to Thomas Hobbes, has always necessitated a moral imperative on the entity exercising it. For centuries past, the idea that a state could be sovereign was always connected to its ability to guarantee the best interests of its own citizens. Thus, if a state could not act in the best interests of its own citizens, it could not be thought of as a sovereign state.[2] The concept of sovereignty has been discussed throughout history, from the time of the Romans through to the present day. It has changed in its definition, concept, and application throughout, especially during the Age different ways of understanding the term:

of Enlightenment. The current notion of state sovereignty contains four aspects, or

domestic sovereignty - actual control over a state exercised by an authority organized within this state,[3] interdependence sovereignty - actual control of movement across state's borders, assuming the borders exist,[3] international legal sovereignty - formal recognition by other sovereign states,[3] Westphalian sovereignty - lack of other authority over state than the domestic authority (examples of such other authorities could be a nondomestic church, a non-domestic political organization, or any other external agent).[3]
Treaty of Paris (1898) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search "Annexation of Puerto Rico" redirects here. For other uses, see Annexation

of Puerto Rico (disambiguation).

The Treaty of Paris of 1898, 30 Stat. 1754, was an agreement made in 1898 that resulted in Spain surrendering

control of Cuba and ceding Puerto Rico, parts of the West Indies, Guam, and the Philippines to the United States. The cession of the Philippines involved a payment of $20 million to Spain by the United States.[1] The treaty was signed on December 10, 1898, and ended the Spanish-American War. It came into effect on April 11, 1899, when the ratifications were exchanged.[2]
The Treaty signaled the end of the Spanish

Empire in America and the Pacific Ocean (see also the GermanSpanish Treaty (1899)), and marked the beginning of an age of United States colonial power.
SCARBOROUGH SHOAL ISSUE HERE IN THE PHILIPPINES OVER CHINA I. 3 maps presented as Bajo de Masinloc or Scarborough Shoal as part of Zamabales Philippines :1.)Carta Hydrographical y Chorographical De Las Yslas Filipinas by Fr. Pedro Murilo Velarde, S.J. and published in 1734; 2.) 11792 drawn by the Alejandro Malaspina expedition and published in 1808 in Madrid, Spain.It was reproduced in the Atlas of the 1939 Philippines Census;3.)Mapa General Islas Filipinas, Observatorio de Manila published in 1990 by the US Coast and Geodetic Survey. II. Republic Act 9522 which indicates that it was declared in the United nation .If it is presented in United Nation definitely it has been approved by the leaders of the different countriesfrom Republic Act 9522 MARCH 10,2009 Section 2. The baseline in the following areas over which the Philippines likewise exercises sovereignty and jurisdiction shall be determined as "Regime of Islands" under the Republic of the Philippines consistent with Article 121 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS): a) The Kalayaan Island Group as constituted under Presidential Decree No. 1596; and b) Bajo de Masinloc, also known as Scarborough Shoal III. China and Phils. signatories to the 1992 UNCLOS dated July 6,1996 which indicates that anything within 200 miles from the baseline of a country belongs to that country.China located about 500 nautical miles away from Panatag Shoal or Bajo de Masinloc in West Philippine Sea(Philippines 124 nautical miles compared to China 500 nautical miles).UNCLOS best proof for our territorial rights(declared in the united nation). IV. Chapter VI of United Nations Charter provides the State to any dispute which is likely to endanger the maintenance of Int'l peace and Security -possible for dispute because China endanger the maintenance of Int'l Peace and Security V. Chapter VIII of United Nation Chapter provides for actions with respect to threats to peace ,breaches of the peace and act of aggression. -China shows aggression from 2 to 13 vessels in Scarborough Shoal "Scarborough Shoal" Disputed Territory Scarborough Shoal (also known as Scarborough Reef/Panatag Shoal/Huangyan Island/Minzhu Jiao/Bajo de Masinloc) - Geographically situated not too far from the also-contested Spratly Island and Paracel Islands, this mound of sand has similar sovereignty issues to it's more well-known neighbours. The Philippines controls and runs this group, but China (People's Republic of China) lays claim to it, as part of it's Paracels, Spratlys, and Zhongsha Islands Authority, and Taiwan (Republic of China) expresses sovereignty too, in the context of being the 'true ruler of China'. Fishing is important in this part of the ocean, and this is probably the main reason for such a high demand on an circumspect isolated bunch of small low-lying islands and reefs. Scarborough Shoal or Scarborough Reef: (Chinese name: Huangyan Island, Philippine name: Panatag Shoal, Bajo de Masinloc). , more correctly described as a group of islands and reefs in an atoll shape than a shoal, is located between the Macclesfield

Bank and Luzon Island of the

Philippines in the South China Sea.

The shoal was named after a tea-trade ship Scarborough which was wrecked on the rock with everyone perishing on board in the late 18th century. Geography The shoal forms a triangle-shaped chain of reefs and islands (but mostly rocks) 55 kilometres (34 mi) around with an of area 150 square kilometers. It has a

lagoon with area of 130 km and depth of about 15 metres (49 ft). The shoal is a protrusion from a 3,500 m deep abyssal plain. Several of the islands
including "South Rock" are 1/2 m to 3 m high and many of the reefs are just below water at high tide. Near the mouth of the lagoon are the ruins of an iron tower, 8.3 m high. To the east, the 5,000 - 6,000 meter deep Manila (220 km) away. Activities in the Surrounding Area The shoal and its surrounding area are rich fishing grounds. A significant number of Chinese fishermen have been arrested by Philippine officials in this area, particularly during 1998-2001. Most arrests were for alleged using illegal methods of fishing and catching endangered and protected species. There are thick layers of guano lying on the rocks in the area. Several Filipino-sponsored and Chinese-sponsored diving excursions and amateur ham radio operations, DXpeditions (1994, 1995, 1997 and 2007), have been carried out in the area. Sovereignty Dispute The Peoples Republic of China and Republic of China (Taiwan) Map depicting China's territory in South China Sea, by Ministry of the Interior, ROC, 1947 The People's

Trench separates the shoal from the Philippine archipelago. It is about 123 miles (198 km) west of Subic Bay. The nearest landmass is Palauig, Zambales, on Luzon Island in the Philippines, 137 miles

Republic of China and the Republic of China (Taiwan) claim that the shoal was first discovered and drawn in a map in the Yuan Dynasty as early as 1279 and was historically used by Chinese fishermen. In 1279, Guo Shoujing, a Chinese astronomer, performed surveying of the South China Sea, and the surveying point was reported to be the Scarborough Shoal. In 1935, China regarded the shoal as part of the Zhongsha Islands. In 1947, the shoal was given the name Minzhu Jiao. In 1983, it was renamed Huangyan Island with Minzhu Jiao reserved as a second name. In
1956, China protested Philippine remarks that South China Sea islands in close proximity to Philippine territory should belong to the Philippines. China's Declaration on the territorial Sea, promulgated in 1958, says in part, The breadth of the Territorial Sea of the People's Republic of China shall be twelve nautical miles. This applies to all territories of the People's Republic of China, including the Chinese mainland and its coastal islands, as well as Taiwan and its surrounding islands, the Penghu Islands, the Dongsha Islands, the Xisha Islands, the Zhongsha Islands [italics added], the Nansha Islands and all other islands belonging to China which are separated from the mainland and its coastal islands by the high seas. China reaffirmed its claim of sovereignty over the Zhongsha Islands in its 1992 Law on the territorial Sea and the Contiguous Zone. China claims all the islands, reefs, and shoals within a U-shaped line in the South China Sea drawn in 1947 as its territory. Scarborough shoal lies within this area. China further asserted its claim shortly after the departure of the US Navy force from Subic, Zambales, Philippines. In the late 1970s, many scientific expedition activities organized by State Bureau of Surveying, National Earthquake Bureau and National Bureau of Oceanography were held in the shoal and around this area. In 1980, a stone marker reading "South China Sea Scientific Expedition" was installed on the South Rock, but was removed by Philippines in 1997. The Philippine government has proposed taking the Panatag issue to the International Tribunal on the Law of the Sea, but the Chinese government has rejected this, insisting on bilateral discussions. The Philippines Territorial map claimed by the Philippines (not fully acknowledged by other countries) The Philippines claims that as early as the Spanish colonization of the Philippines, Filipino fishermen were already using the area as a traditional fishing ground and shelter during bad weather. In 1957, The Philippine government conducted an oceanographic survey of the area and together with the force based in then U.S. flying a Philippine

US Navy

Naval Base Subic Bay in Zambales, used the area as an impact range for defense purposes. An 8.3 meter high flag pole flag was raised in 1965. A small lighthouse was also built and operated the same year. In 1992, the Philippine Navy rehabilitated the lighthouse and reported it to the International Maritime Organization for publication in the List of Lights. As of 2009, the military-maintained
lighthouse is non-operational. Several official Philippine maps published by Spain and United States in 18th and 20th centuries show Scarborough Shoal as Philippine territory. The 18thcentury map "Carta hydrographica y chorographica de las Islas Filipinas" (1734) shows the Scarborough Shoal then was named as Panacot Shoal. The map also shows the shape of the shoal as consistent with the current maps available as today. During the 1900s Mapa General. Islas Filipinas, Observatorio de Manila and US Coast and Geodetic Survey Map includes the Scarborough Shoal named as "Baju De Masinloc".In 1792, another map drawn by the Malaspina expedition and published in 1808 in Madrid, Spain also showed Bajo de Masinloc as part of Philippine territory. The map showed the route of the Malaspina expedition to and around the shoal. It was reproduced in the Atlas of the 1939 Philippine Census, which was published in Manila a year later and predates the controversial 1947 Chinese South China Sea Claim Map that shows no chinese name on it .Another topographic map drawn in 1820 shows the shoal, named there as "Bajo Scarburo", as a constituent part of Sambalez (Zambales province).

Treaty of Paris (1898) between the United States, Treaty of Washington (1900) between Spain and the United States,Convention Between the United States and Great Britain (1930), 1935 Constitution of the Philippines, Republic Act No. 3046 "Act to Define the Baselines of the Territorial Sea of the Philippines"(1961), or the 1987 Constitution of the Philippines. The Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) asserts that the basis of Philippine
The Scarborough Shoal is not included within the territorial lines defined in the sovereignty and jurisdiction over the rock features of Bajo de Masinloc is not premised on the cession by Spain of the Philippine archipelago to the United States under the Treaty of Paris, and argues that the matter that the rock features of Bajo de Masinloc are not included or within the limits of the Treaty of Paris as alleged by China is therefore immaterial and of no consequence. The Philippines bases its claim on the principle of terra nullius, which holds that it was previously unclaimed by a sovereign

state, which is also applied by the Philippines in its claims to the Spratly Islands. By virtue of the Presidential Decree No. 1599 issued by President Ferdinand Marcos on June

1978, the Philippines claims an Exclusive

Economic Zone (EEZ) up to 200 nautical miles (370 km) from the baselines from which their territorial sea is measured.In 2009, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo enacted the Philippine Baselines Law of 2009 (RA 9522). The new law classifies the Spratly Islands and the Scarborough Shoal as a regime of islands under the Republic of the Philippines.
The DFA further cites the Island of Palmas Case, where the sovereignty of the island was adjudged in favor of the Netherlands because of effective jurisdiction and control despite the historic claim of Spain. The Philippines has exercised effective jurisdiction and effective occupation of the shoal since its independence. It also explains that the Exclusive Economic Zone claim on the waters around Scarborough is different from the sovereignty exercised by the Philippines in the shoal. China's naval intrusion to the Philippine territory since Saturday April 7, 2012 in the Scarborough Shoal / or also called Panatag Shoal is a follow-up to its recent forays into Philippine western territorial waters. It is the fifth times where China Intruded the Philippine Territory since June 2011. China has confronted Philippine military and civilian vessels in the following places:

1. 5.

Recto Bank 2. Rajah Soliman Reef 3. Quirino Atoll 4. Escoda Shoal. The recent is the Panatag

Shoal / Scarborough Shoal.

All four lie a few dozen kilometers off Palawan but 2,000 km from China's nearest island-province of Hainan; Scarborough is 220 km off Zambales but more than 800 km from Hong Kong. China's pretext of protecting its fishermen and seismic surveyors is not unique. As in the last two decades, it trespasses into Philippine offshore oilfields and abets fish poaching to prop up a shaky counterclaim over the West Philippine (South China) Sea.

Vietnam, Philippines Strongly Protest Against Chinas including their territory in passport map
Philippines Strongly Protest Against China's including their territory in passport map. Photo: Filipiinamom.com THE Philippines has protested China's new passport design, which includes the image of a map of the entire disputed South China Sea. China's new passports show a map including its claim to almost all the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea) provoking protests by the Philippines Thursday and Vietnam but leaving out islands bitterly disputed with Japan. Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario on Thursday said it was unacceptable because it impinges on the sovereignty of the Philippines, which has claims to territories in the West Philippines Sea. "The Philippines strongly protests the inclusion of the nine-dash lines in the e-passport as such image covers an area that is clearly part of the Philippines' territory and maritime domain," he said, quoting a diplomatic protest sent to Beijing. The so-called nine-dash lines take in about 90 per cent of the 3.5-million-square-kilometre West Philippine Sea on Chinese maps. Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan also have overlapping claims to the South China Sea, which straddles key shipping lanes in the region and is believed to be rich in resources. In December, the Philippines are hosting a four-party meeting with Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei in a bid to resolve the territorial dispute. Beijing has been engaged in a simmering row with its southern neighbors over its claim to vast swathes of the West Philippine Sea, with Chinese maps having a "nine-dash line" that runs almost to the Philippine and Malaysian coasts. The row saw a maritime stand-off with Manila earlier this year and took centre stage at the East Asia Summit, attended by US President Barack Obama, earlier this week. China and Japan have also engaged in furious exchanges over East China Sea islands administered by Tokyo, which calls them Senkaku, and claimed by Beijing as Diaoyu. China saw mass protests over them nationwide in September. The latest front in the West Philippine Sea dispute is travel documents issued by Beijing, with its new computer-chipped passport, or e-Passport, showing various islands as Chinese territory, including the Paracels and Spratlys. Manila claims part of the Spratlys and Philippine Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario sent Beijing a formal protest letter on Thursday, calling the maps "an excessive declaration of maritime space in violation of international law". "The Philippines strongly protests the inclusion of the nine-dash lines in the e-Passport as such image covers an area that is clearly part of the Philippines' territory and maritime domain," del Rosario said. Foreign ministry spokesman Raul Hernandez added: "If we allow that, then that would mean acquiescence to their claim of the whole of the South China Sea." The West Philippine Seais strategically significant, home to some of the world's most important shipping lanes and believed to be rich in resources. The Paracel islands lie within it and have been held by China since it forced out South Vietnamese troops in 1974, but they are still claimed by Hanoi.Some social media users in China said the maps had delayed them at Vietnamese immigration."I got into Vietnam after lots of twists and turns," said one user of China's hugely popular micro blogging site Sina Weibo, saying an entry stamp was initially refused "because of the printed map of China's sea boundaries which Vietnam does not recognize". Vietnamese foreign ministry spokesman Luong Thanh Nghi told reporters on Thursday that the Chinese documents amounted to a violation of Hanoi's sovereignty and it had protested to the embassy. Officials handed Chinese representatives "a diplomatic note opposing the move, asking China to abolish the wrongful contents printed in these electronic passports", he said. Other claimants to parts of the West Philippine Seaare Brunei, Malaysia and Taiwan. Beijing attempted to downplay the diplomatic fallout from the recently introduced passports, with a foreign ministry spokeswoman saying the maps were "not made to target any specific country". "We hope to maintain active communication with relevant countries and promote the healthy development of people to people exchanges," Hua Chunying added.

In Tokyo, a foreign ministry official said: "We have confirmed that disputed islands in West Philippine Seaappear in a map printed on new Chinese passports. "On the other hand, Senkaku doesn't. Therefore, we are not in a position to comment or complain." ( http://is.gd/AlEA7q) Effects of the Scarborough Shoal between China and PhilippinesLast June 8 was the Filipino-Chinese friendship day. And even though this day has been celebrated for the past eleven years, the bout for a piece of land called Scarborough Shaul still persists. A question on the minds of a lot of people is this: How will this issue ultimately affect the trade and commerce between the Philippines and China? Different media institutions are flooded with news about the phenomena of the great Scarborough Shaul, which is about 135 nautical miles from Luzon and 550 nautical miles from China and 300 nautical miles from the tip of Taiwan. The possible oil harvest of the land has been attracting a lot of attention towards it. The dispute has been leaving the two countries tensed in their bilateral-relations. As the issue on oil rises, those on trade and commerce come up as well. This greatly affects the Philippines and Chinas bilateral-relations. For the former is one of the top 5 trading partners of the latter. Since last month, the country already experienced one of the lowest drops in its stock exchange. The Philippine stock Exchange index stooped down by 3.4 percent, or 172.24 points to 4,890.20, while the broader all-share index retreated by 2.58 percent ,or 86.72 points to 3,279.09. But more importantly, the trade capacity reached 1.47 billion shares worth P6.38 billion ($146.75 million) with 146 stocks declining, 28 increasing, and 34 remaining the same.
But despite the decline, trade relations are forced to improve by officials of both countries. Just last month, the Malacanang palace assured that the 60-billion dollar twoway trade target is still on and hopefully achieved by 2016. Also, Filipino agricultural leaders had a trip to Beijing which ensured the tight bond for agricultural trade. According to the chinabusinessphilippines.com, China is currently the Philippines third largest trading partner and the fastest growing market for Philippine exports. Since 2002, trade has grown at an impressive yearly rate of 55%. Bilateral trade in 2006 hit a 33.6% increase. The total approved Chinese investments in the Philippines for January to September 2006 reached US$370 million (2.59 billion yuan)a considerable improvement over the US$3.8 million (26.6 million yuan) they invested in 2005.It has been a long journey. Since the Tang Dynasty in 618-907 A.D., the two countries have been trading and building each others industries. And as the dispute remains, there is little chance as to the breakage of not just the trade relations of the two, but its historical and cultural ties.

Software, Definition Software, is the collection of computer programs, procedures and documentation that performs different tasks on a computer system. The term 'software' was first used by John Tukey in 1958. At the very basic level, computer software consists of a machine language that comprises groups of binary values, which specify processor instructions. The processor instructions change the state of computer hardware in a predefined sequence. Briefly, computer software is the language in which a computer speaksSoftware typically refers to programs which need to be installed into a computer in order to perform certain applications or functions. Software is typically installed into the hard drive (hardware). Software Issues and Trends Software Licensing -Protection by software vendors to prevent unauthorized use. Software Upgrades -A revised version of software that usually included fixes of known problems, plus enhancements to existing liabilities. Global Software Support -Software that is distributed around the globe may require unique support mechanism due to local political and economic conditions. Types of Software Programming Software: This is one of the most commonly known and popularly used types of computer software. These software come in the form of tools that assist a programmer in writing computer programs. Computer programs are sets of logical instructions that make a computer system perform certain tasks. The tools that help programmers in instructing a computer system include text editors, compilers and interpreters. Compilers translate source code written in a programming language into the language which a computer understands (mostly the binary form). Compilers generate objects which are combined and converted into executable programs through linkers. Debuggers are used to check code for bugs and debug it. The source code is partially or completely simulated for the debugging tool to run on it and remove bugs if any. Interpreters execute programs. They execute the source code or a precompiled code or translate source code into an intermediate language before execution. System Software: It helps in running computer hardware and the computer system. System software refers to the operating systems; device drivers, servers, windowing systems and utilities. System software helps an application programmer in abstracting away from hardware, memory and other internal complexities of a computer. An operating system provides users with a platform to execute high-level programs. Firmware and BIOS provide the means to operate hardware. Application Software: It enables the end users to accomplish certain specific tasks. Business software, databases and educational software are some forms of application software. Different word processors, which are dedicated to specialized tasks to be performed by the user, are other examples of application software. Malware: Malware refers to any malicious software and is a broader category of software that are a threat to computer security. Adware, spyware, computer viruses, worms, trojan horses and scareware are malware. Computer viruses are malicious programs which replicate themselves and spread from one computer to another over the network or the Internet. Computer worms do the same, the only difference being that viruses need a host program to attach with and spread, while worms don't need to attach themselves to programs. Trojans replicate themselves and steal information. Spyware can monitor user activity on a computer and steal user information without their knowledge. Adware: Adware is software with the means of which advertisements are played and downloaded to a computer. Programmers design adware as their tool to generate revenue. They do extract user information like the websites he visits frequently and the pages he likes. Advertisements that appear as pop-ups on your screen are the result of adware programs tracking you. But adware is not harmful to computer security or user privacy. The data it collects is only for the purpose of inviting user clicks on advertisements. Inventory Management Software: This type of software helps an organization in tracking its goods and materials on the basis of quality as well as quantity. Warehouse inventory management functions encompass the internal warehouse movements and storage. Inventory software helps a company in organizing inventory and optimizing the flow of goods in the organization, thus leading to improved customer service. Utility Software: Also known as service routine, utility software helps in the management of computer hardware and application software. It performs a small range of tasks. Disk defragmenters, systems utilities and virus scanners are some of the typical examples of utility software. Data Backup and Recovery Software: An ideal data backup and recovery software provides functionalities beyond simple copying of data files. This software often supports user needs of specifying what is to be backed up and when. Backup and recovery software preserve the original organization of files and allow an easy retrieval of the backed up data.