REACTION PAPER

The video of Former Chief Justice of the Philippines Antonio Carpio uploaded on the
youtube channel of the Institute for Maritime and Ocean Affairs entitled "Defending Philippine
Sovereign Rights in the West Philippine Sea" taught me a lot about the historic territorial
rights of the Philippines. This topic discussed the issue of China claiming our territory - the West
Philippine Sea. China claims that the whole South China Sea inside their so-called "nine-dash
line" is part of their national territory, and they are the ones who discover, name and explore the
South China Sea. According to Former Chief Justice Carpio, China's claim is entirely untrue and
no basis on which he clearly explains and proves his point throughout the presentation, and I
absolutely agree with his standpoint. Former Chief Justice Carpio reasons out and provides
evidence such as maps, books, and articles that validate that China is providing misinformation
to their countrymen. As a student and a Filipino citizen, I have the freedom to share my reaction
and opinion regarding the said issue. Indeed, I am convinced and affirm that the West Philippine
Sea belongs to us, and China has no rights to claim our territory. 

           As a student, watching the video makes me feel like I am riding a roller coaster: up and
down emotions that rule over my body - amazed, enlightened, annoyed, and many more,
because of the vast and eye-opener information about our sovereign rights in the West
Philippine Sea. First, I am amazed how Former Chief Justice Carpio prepared a clear, simple,
and comprehensive presentation that works so well. He points out the important dates, details,
pieces of evidence, and reasons that show that we - Filipino people have the rights and freedom
to own the resources in the West Philippine Sea. As Filipino, we must keep in mind that it's our
responsibility to fight and protect our territory from other countries such as China - who's trying
to take and claim our possession and natural resources. Also, I am mesmerized seeing the
historical maps of the Philippines and China that show their boundary. After seeing the oldest
map of the Philippines that shows Spratlys (Los Bajos de Paragua) and Scarborough Shoal
(Panacot) belongs to ours, it strengthens my belief and idea and it serves as a piece of heavy
evidence that we own and have rights in the West Philippine Sea. Second, I am shocked and at
the same time annoyed by the fact that the Chinese government entails and teaches their
countrymen that the lands within the nine-dash line are part of their national boundary, which is
misleading information. It is stated in the video that this nine-dash line has no legal basis and
considered as a piece of misinformation because the idea of a nine-dash line only imposed and
distributed within China in 1947, and the world didn't even know that the nine-dash line exists
until China notified the world on May 7, 2009, that the nine-dash line exists, which leads to the
objection of a lot of countries that include Indonesia, Vietnam, and the Philippines. It is good to
know that the nine-dash line map of China contradicts the United Nations Convention on the
Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) 200 nautical mile Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). And cannot have
or create any maritime rights to any territorial sea, exclusive economic zone, or extended
continental shelf, especially in the West Philippine Sea within the submitted nine-dash line of
China. But, it distresses me knowing that China still pursues to claim the West Philippine Sea
and even spread this information all over their country for how many decades. And now,
Chinese people prohibited our Filipino fishermen from navigating and sailing within our territory -
the West Philippine Sea. Third, this video enlightened my mind and helped me understand
deeper the issue of the West Philippine Sea. The proofs that Former Chief Justice Carpio
provides are well-established ones, especially the historical maps of China that show its national
boundary and the nine-dash line that China imposed is not exists and identified over the past
decades. It means that China never had rights in the West Philippine Sea, which in my opinion,
it is their selfishness, pride, and fear that they may lose their wealth that push them to claim the
territories within their proposed nine-dash line to maintain their economic wealth. The South
China Sea consists of plenty of resources and provides that sustain the world's waterways and
needs, such as fish catch that commonly came from Spratlys, an island found in the West
Philippine Sea. Lastly, it is funny to know that China is not also claiming our territory, also
published and issued false statements, as proof, in the editorial written by President Xi Jinping
on the Philippine Star, he stated that Admiral Zheng He is the first one who visited and explored
the Philippines, which is another false information again because many scholars, researchers,
books and articles uttered that Admiral Zheng He never visited nor explored the Philippines.
There are illustrations that Former Chief Justice Carpio proved, such as 7 Voyages of Zheng
He, where contradict the statement of President Xi Jinping. It is funny yet annoying that China
stated so much untrue information that they spread it through their countrymen, and their people
even thoroughly believe it. In addition, they say that the Philippines and China are good friends
where they have hidden agenda behind their called friendship. Another statement that pissed
me off is the opening statement of Ambassador Zhao Jianhua in his published opinion article in
the Philippine Star last November 15, 2018, it states that our country and China are "being
separated by only a narrow strip of water, China and the Philippines have been closed
neighbors for centuries." The Duterte Administration never questioned this article that obviously
justifies the nine-dash line map of China. It seems that President Duterte and his cabinet
members agree and uphold the statement that China and the Philippines are separate by only a
narrow strip of waters, which is a hundred percent untrue. And a question pops up in my mind,
why does our government allow this and did nothing to clarify things with China that they did not
own the entire South China Sea, including the West Philippine Sea? It really saddens me,
despite having a bunch of evidence that Former Chief Justice Antonio Carpio laid out to justify
that we have rights and freedom in the West Philippine Sea, still, our government turn a blind
eye to the issue of Arbitration of the West Philippine Sea despite winning against China's
claims.

           Overall, I may say again that I hundred percent agree with Former Chief Justice Carpio
that we must fight the battle against China's false claims and preserves our sovereign
rights in the West Philippine Sea through the rule of law. It simply means we should not let
other countries steal or rule over our land, and we should never be afraid of powerful countries
because there are impose laws that everyone must strictly follow and comply with. In addition, I
believe and agree with the quotation of No one is above the law, not the police nor the rich. Still,
I am disappointed in how our government handles the issue of Arbitration of the West Philippine
Sea. Definitely, we have a lot of clear-cut evidence that proves that we have sovereign rights in
the West Philippine Sea yet, our government let China rule over our territory while our fellow
citizen suffers. On my final note, we should never be afraid and waste the chance to get back
what's ours. There is nothing wrong with fighting and defending what really belongs to the
Philippines and the Filipinos.