Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, July 12) — Seven years after the landmark ruling, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) on Wednesday launched a microsite on Manila’s 2016 arbitration victory against Beijing in their maritime dispute in the South China Sea.
The microsite will \”provide a central resource for official information and positions on the Award and its contributions to the rule of law and peaceful settlement of disputes through UNCLOS (United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea) and international law,\” DFA Secretary Enrique Manalo said in a statement.
The site’s title “Not One Inch” was attributed to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s previous statement that the country won’t lose an inch of its territory.
It contains links to resources \”including the material submitted to the Tribunal and made available by the Permanent Court of Arbitration, the Statements of the Department of Foreign Affairs on the South China Sea Arbitration,\” as well as the legal and geographic scope of the West Philippine Sea, and other resources relevant to the subject.
READ: Remembering the 2016 Hague ruling: What has happened since then?
DFA Maritime and Ocean Affairs Office Assistant Secretary Maria Angela Ponce, meanwhile, said the microsite aims to give a clearer picture of the complex issues “faced by the country in the South China Sea and the West Philippine Sea.”
\”We understand that the issue is complex and may be confusing, so this is an attempt to clear some of the fog,\” she said.
The arbitral award junked China’s sweeping claims in the South China Sea and recognized the Philippines’ sovereign rights in areas within its 200-nautical mile exclusive economic zone.
