By Jelly F. Musico
Philippine foreign affairs spokesman Raul Hernandez appealed on Friday to China not to aggravate the fragile situation in the Scarborough Shoal following the arrival of a third Chinese vessel at the West Philippine Sea.
"Let us not aggravate this by any action that would escalate the situation. And we think this is an action that aggravates and escalates the situation," Hernandez said as quoted by international news agency Agence France-Presse.
Hernandez said the DFA would ask China why they had violated its agreement with the Philippines, which might aggravate the 10-day standoff in the Scarborough Shoal.
The Philippines claims its sovereignty over the Scarborough Shoal, which is within the 200-nautical-mile exclusive economic zone.
The arrival of third Chinese military vessel at the West Philippine Sea happened as China rejected a proposal of the Philippines to settle the dispute through International Tribunal for the Law of the Seas (ITLOS).
Hernandez said in a press conference on Friday that the Philippines was preparing to go to the ITLOS unilaterally "if China will not go with us to ITLOS, our legal team will go to ITLOS unilaterally."
The DFA spokesman said the Philippines was not only asserting its territorial rights but also its sovereign rights over the Scarborough Shoal.
The standoff at the Scarborough Shoal, or Panatag Shoal, started when the Philippine Navy found Chinese vessels in the area carrying corals, giants clams and live sharks.
Last Thursday, Senator Francis 'Chiz' Escudero supported the proposal of Senator Ralph Recto for a joint exploration of the Scarborough Shoal "because we might be fighting over an area which has nothing to fight for."
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