China: Philippines getting int'l sympathy through deception

MANILA, Philippines — China's representative to the United Nations (UN) claimed that the Philippines started the territorial dispute over the South China Sea and accused the country of trying to gain global sympathy.

In a report at the 24th meeting of state parties of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), Deputy Permanent Representative Wang Min said the Philippines' accusations against China are "false."

"[W]e must point out that the root cause of the disputes between China and the Philippines in the South China Sea is the Philippines' illegal occupation of some islands and reefs of China's Nansha islands (Spratlys)," Wang said.

"The Philippines attempts to legalize its infringements and provocations by dragging China into arbitral proceedings. The Philippines is also trying to win international sympathy and support through deception. This is what the problem is in essence," he added.

Wang said pursuant to the provisions of UNCLOS, the Chinese government made a declaration in 2006 excluding disputes over maritime delimitation and territorial sovereignty from compulsory dispute settlement procedures.

He said China, as a sovereign state and a state party to UNCLOS, has the right under international law to do this.

The Chinese official also reiterated his country's stand that it does not accept the arbitration case filed by the Philippines.

"This is fully based on the provisions of the international law. And China's position will not change," he said.

Insisting that China has "undisputable sovereignty" over the South China Sea, Wang defended the construction efforts of his country on the contested maritime features.

"China's construction on the related islands and reefs and measures to preserve biological resources, including a moratorium on fishing, in the waters under China's jurisdiction fall well within China's sovereignty," Wang said. -Louis Bacani