2 senators urge government to bring China 'threat' before UN

Deputy Minority Leader and Kabayan Rep. Harry Roque said however that Supreme Court Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio should not give "false hope" that the United Nations will be able to resolve China's threat.

 

"I agree that China’s alleged threat, if true, is a violation of the United Nations Charter. But while we can certainly go to the UN to seek peaceful solutions pertaining to the West Philippine Sea dispute, but we also have to consider that fact that we will probably not get relief there as China will certainly veto any resolution we file in the UN General Assembly," Roque said in a statement on Monday.

 

Roque said that while all threats of war are within the cognizance of the UN Security Council, China still has veto vote being a permanent member of the council.

 

The UN Security Council is composed of 15 countries, including the Permanent Five: China, United States, United Kingdom, France, and Russia.

 

"If a permanent member does not fully agree with a proposed resolution but does not wish to cast a veto, it may choose to abstain, thus allowing the resolution to be adopted if it obtains the required number of nine favorable votes," Roque said.

 

Supreme Court Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio first brought the idea of bringing the issue of China's threat to the United Nations General Assembly.

 

In a statement on Saturday, Carpio said that the Philippines should sponsor a resolution to condemn China's threat of war and demand China to comply with the ruling of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

 

"The Philippine Constitution mandates that the 'State shall protect the nation’s marine wealth in its exclusive economic zone.' Since the Philippines has renounced war as an instrument of national policy, the president has the constitutional duty to use all legal means under international law to protect Philippine EEZ," Carpio said.