MANILA, Philippines — “The sea, the sea is everything...Virtue lies in the middle ground...”  — Jose Rizal

Happy 150th birthday, Dr. Jose Rizal!  We wish you could have lived that long up to this day, and so, too, do we all wish to eventually live that long (the better to serve God, country, and people). 

In his very first trip from the Philippines onboard the steamship “Salvadora” to Barcelona via Singapore, 21-year-old Jose Rizal in May, 1882, crossed the South China Sea. 

Were he still around, Rizal (a lover of nature and the sea) would have relished a serene, bountiful, and an “all-nation” South China Sea with freedom of access/commerce, and open to enjoyment/development with proportional benefits guaranteed for all stakeholders.

Most disturbing of issues these days is the rise of tensions around the Spratlys, where the Philippines, China, and others have conflicting claims. The heightened “unfriendliness” generated by Beijing’s spokespersons have arisen allegedly from “bad rumors/speculations” (according to Chinese Ambassador Liu Jianchao).  In reality, there have been intrusions by Chinese aircraft into Philippine airspace (23 May), Chinese patrol boats in the Recto (Reed) Bank only 85 miles west of Palawan (2 March), and, most serious, a Chinese missile frigate’s firing at Filipino fishing boats near Palawan’s Quirino atoll (25 Feb). 

Is shooting war or armed conflict the ultimate outcome of the barrage of recurring protests from the Philippines and Vietnam on one hand, and repeated counter-denials from China on the other?  Is this what our three countries and other stakeholders, including the US, want for our posterity?   Of course, NOT! 

Is the threat of violence by “bullying” neighbors what Rizal envisioned for the Philippines a century hence?   Of course, NOT!

Right now, relations between the Philippines and China, and between Vietnam and China are at their lowest point since 1995.

Philippines-China friendship?

Last 09 June, it was our distinct honor to keynote the celebration of the joint 36th anniversary of the opening of our diplomatic relations with the PROC and the 10th anniversary of Philippines-China “Friendship Day” at the PICC before an audience of 5,000 Filipinos and Filipino-Chinese which included Ambassador Liu, Foreign Undersecretary Erlinda Basilio, several congressmen, and Chairman Manny Dy of the host Federation of Filipino-Chinese Associations of the Philippines.

Against the background of harmonious historical relations between our two countries, that joint celebration was an important landmark for close neighbors and distant relatives.

Sadly, the screaming headlines that same day were:  “China Blasts Philippines Anew on Spratlys Claim, etc.”  These were not only counter-productive but also unwarranted (because of ongoing diplomatic “massaging”) and, indeed, most unfortunate coming as they did on that very day of rededication to friendship.

Both Beijing and Manila realize fully well our mutual need to preserve existing conditions of stability, fairness, and reciprocity that have made East Asia the world’s fastest growing region.  And so do Hanoi and Washington, DC. 

A world without great-power wars

Certainly, there must be positive actions that China, the Philippines, Vietnam, other claimants, and the US can undertake to avoid further irritants and facilitate solutions. 

This senior citizen who has long wrestled with similar problems (on Tracks I and II) believes win-win solutions can be achieved if Asia-Pacific’s leaders and peace advocates strive patiently and unwaveringly to forge a covenant binding upon all country-stakeholders – big or otherwise. 

Global interdependence, science/technology, and the empowerment of people (as at EDSA and the “Arab Spring”), I believe, offer us the possibility of a future world without war.   Ordinary people’s assertion of their political/human rights is making war obsolete among the great powers and, increasingly, also among others that have linked their progress to the global economy.

These universal aspirations were strongly affirmed in the Joint Communiqué following President Hu Jintao’s state visit to the US last January on President Obama invitation, thus: 

“The two sides agreed to enhance communication and coordination in the Asia-Pacific region in a spirit of mutual respect and cooperation, and to work together with other Asia-Pacific countries, including through multilateral institutions, to promote peace, stability, and prosperity.”

In his homeland, last 15 April, President Hu declared before world leaders at the Boao Forum for Asia: “China will always be a good neighbor, good friend, and good partner of other Asian countries.”

On this basis, the future world community is hoped to become a concert of civilizations – where countries abide by the civilized rules of the United Nations.

Meanwhile, we must also adhere to open regionalism, respect the interests of countries outside the Asia-Pacific, and welcome their participation in peacekeeping and security cooperation.

Positive benefits from binding commitments

President Aquino III has declared his intention to visit China to honor the invitation of President Hu made last March. 

This visit should take place soonest – since there are issues of national and regional criticality our two heads of state must navigate.  Concurrently, diplomats from all stakeholder-countries must endeavor to forge a truly binding agreement to resolve the Spratly issues, thus insuring our region’s uninterrupted peace and sustained progress. 

The Spratlys should be first on their agenda.  Secondly, we Filipinos need to tap into China’s surging economy – if we are to overcome global food shortages and price inflation looming on the horizon.  Chinese capital and expertise can help us cultivate our vast agricultural farms, harness renewable energy, and develop the resources of our surrounding seas. 

President Aquino should also renegotiate the stalled national broadband and railroad backbone projects now “derailed” by allegations of corruption.

Demilitarization: Confidence- building measures

The Pacific Forum Center for Strategic and International Studies report, “Confidence Building Measures in the South China Sea” (August 2001), reveals: 

“In 1995, when China’s encroachment on Mischief Reef came to light, President FVR proposed the ‘freezing’ of troop strengths on disputed islets, followed by the demilitarization of the Spratlys, and then cooperative efforts by rival claimants to assure safe shipping passage in order to preserve the maritime environment and exploit its sea/seabed resources judiciously under joint authority.  These CBMs have never been tried; it is time they should be.”

Since 1994, starting with Vietnam President Le Duc Anh, FVR had proposed to ASEAN leaders (and before various international forums) the demilitarization of the Spratlys and joint development of the resources therein while preserving ecological balance.

The UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and associated international commitments must become the basis for productive dialogues leading to binding covenants – so that our states can move jointly to explore, develop, and conserve aquatic and hydrocarbon resources.

The Chinese and Philippine positions coincide on global warming issues. China sided with the poor countries on climate-change financing, specifically: “The developed countries should fulfill their obligations of providing financial resources to the developing countries, and the latter should not be required to provide funds therefor.”

On fighting international terrorism; preventing nuclear proliferation; and interdicting traffic across borders of humans, arms, narcotics and protected species, Philippines-China collaboration should be further strengthened.

Replacing Pax Americana with Pax Asia-Pacifica

Over these next 5-10 years, the urgent task for statesmen will be to replace the American peace – or Pax Americana – that has guaranteed stability in our home-region with a more comprehensive Pax Asia-Pacifica that is built on inclusiveness and burden-sharing. 

The Asia-Pacific Peace will involve security cooperation for durable peace based, not on the balance of power, but on the balance of mutual benefit. 

Clearly, this concept must be actualized on the understanding that it entails burden-sharing by all Asia-Pacific nations in contributing forces to insure the region’s harmony and security, and built on stronger cooperative undertakings among the most affluent/powerful countries and regional blocs – the US, China, Japan, India, South Korea, Russia, and ASEAN-10. 

Only if we are able to contain rivalries and arms buildup/stock-piling will we be able to ride this coming wave of progress to win modernization for our peoples. 

Benefits of Pax Asia-Pacifica

Focus now on the everlasting benefits for mankind with such a harmonious multilateral agreement, notably:

* Millions of lives will be saved and destruction of communities avoided in a world without armed conflict. 
* Upliftment of the world’s poor and marginalized can become a reality in our time.
* Taxpayers everywhere will be relieved of onerous and unaffordable spending for arms build-up and proliferation. 
* Funds thus conserved can be redirected to healthcare, food production, education, safe habitats, environmental protection, and other needs.
* Essential public infrastructures, facilities and connectivities can be provided more readily.
* Science/technology can be applied totally to humankind’s survivability on Planet Earth which is threatened by deadly kinds of natural/man-made disasters and endemic diseases. 

Considering our shared interests in the Asia-Pacific, the bottomline is for countries to reinforce our common commitment to sustainable development, enduring peace, preservation of human values, and the well-being of our successor generations.

Rizal now asks: Kaya ba natin ito?

Please send any comments to fvr@rpdev.org.  Copies of articles are available at www.rpdev.org.