The suggestion by some well-meaning sectors for the government to file another case against China in the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague, this time for China’s harassment of Filipino fishermen and for the massive destruction of our coral reefs in Panatag Shoal, may not be advisable for two reasons.One, China does not recognize the arbitral court, despite the fact that it is a signatory to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea that mandates parties with conflicting maritime claims to settle their differences through The Hague tribunal. From the start, Beijing refused to participate in the hearing conducted by the tribunal on the first case filed by the Philippines. It then ignored the tribunal’s ruling issued in July 2016 that validated the Philippines’ claims to parts of the South China Sea. So what assurance can we have that, this time, Beijing would honor another ruling by the arbitral court that would favor us?

Malinao, A. L. (2018, June 23). Diplomacy: PH’s only option vs China. Philippine Daily Inquirer, p. A8.