The Philippines may lose its legal right to Panatag Shoal if it accepts China’s line that it allows Filipinos to fish there “out of goodwill,” acting Chief Justice Antonio Carpio said on Thursday. Speaking in an interview on CNN Philippines, Carpio said China’s goodwill was “immaterial,” as the UN-backed Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague ruled in 2016 that Panatag Shoal — known internationally as Scarborough Shoal — was a common fishing ground for the Philippines, China, and Vietnam. Commenting on a controversy involving Filipino fishermen and Chinese coast guards, Geng Shuang, spokesperson for China’s foreign ministry, earlier told reporters in Beijing that China had been allowing Filipinos to fish at Panatag “out of goodwill.”

Leonen, J., Pazzibugan, D., Salaverria, L., Avedaño, C., & Macatuno, A. (2018, June 15). Carpio warns against PH accepting China’s ‘goodwill’ line. Philippine Daily Inquirer, pp. A1, A8.