President Rodrigo Duterte on Sunday said he made it clear to Chinese President Xi Jinping that Scarborough Shoal belongs to the Philippines, amid earlier reports that the issue was put on the backburner during his state visit. “China said this is theirs, but I said this is ours,” Duterte said in Filipino, during a visit to calamity-stricken Tuguegarao City in Cagayan. Duterte said China has agreed to allow Filipino fishermen to enter the disputed territory even as both sides insist on ownership of the shoal. During his meeting with Chinese officials, Duterte proposed that both countries keep off the shoal’s inner lagoon, the spawning ground of the shoal that also serves as a safe haven for fishermen from tropical cyclones.

Araneta, S., & Herrera C. (2016, October 24). ‘Scarborough is ours’. Manila Standard, pp. A1, A2.