There is an overwhelming majority of Filipinos who are unwavering in their desire to see the administration assert our country’s rights in the West Philippine Sea (WPS), despite some confusing statements from the office of the President. The widespread sentiment of Filipinos against Chinese intrusions in the WPS has remained strong over the years. As shown in many surveys of both Pulse Asia and Social Weather Stations, seven to nearly nine out of 10 Filipinos want government to assert the Philippines’ historic victory against China in 2016 at the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in The Hague. The Pulse Asia poll on June 2018, for instance, revealed 73 percent of Filipinos want our rights to our Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZs) asserted, while a SWS survey, released at the start of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s state visit on November 2018, showed 84 percent “oppose the administration’s inaction in the face of China’s intrusions.”

Lina, J. (2021, May 18). Strategy to enforce the Arbitral Ruling. Manila Bulletin, p. 5.