The Spratlys (Part III)

The Philippine STAR headlined yesterday, “US asks China: Ease tension in the Spratlys” — a development where no less than US Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Kurt Campbell gave a glimpse of what transpired during a recent initial “face-to-face” US-China dialogue in Hawaii that particularly expressed and addressed the US desire to help diffuse the dispute in the China Sea region between China and the Asian country claimants of certain parts of the Spratlys. This posture of the US supports and strengthens the call for sobriety and civil dialogue by President Aquino. It also validates the rational thinking of peace-loving people I talked with — that super powers like China and the US should do everything they can to prevent a costly and ill-advised hostile confrontation.

This columnist maintains her view expressed in previous columns — “The Spratlys Issue” and “The Spratlys Part II” — that both the US and China will consider and assess the bigger picture that could affect — positively or negatively — their present and future relations in addressing the Spratlys dispute, and at the same time, pursue and cooperate in the crafting of a carefully studied “road map” for a possible two-way policy direction that will protect and respect the interest of all concerned in the Spratlys dispute in the interest of peace in the China Seas region. 

The peace advocate with whom I have been discussing the issue also reiterated that the relevant and pertinent thing that matters to the Philippines at hand — now — is to achieve international recognition and respect of its sovereignty over a part of the Spratlys that it claims it owns. This is a legitimate aspiration of a nation. The move of the Philippines to officially lodge a protest or claim with the United Nations or plea for help from the US and other countries — if this has been done — should not be interpreted in any way as a move by the Philippines to disregard its friendship and good relations with China and its people, but rather, as a sincere and genuine search for a fair, just, and honorable consensus from the international community, and realization of an urgent need for “facilitators” and “arbitrators” in developing a better understanding of the substance and viability of the Philippine position and claim.

He also pointed out that discussions about possible cooperation or partnership towards the development and transformation into productive states of the alleged presence of large mineral (gas and oil) deposits inside the claim of the Philippines have merits, and the visit of President Aquino sometime this year — if it pushes through — is a golden opportunity to reiterate the Philippine position about its claim on some parts of the Spratlys. However, for practical purposes, the President opined that discussions about the matter should be limited to determining specific future dates to tackle the issue with the request to China to stop its unilateral development of areas covered by the Philippine claim, and instead, focus more on addressing on-going dialogue of cooperation and partnership on projects or matters outside of the Spratlys issue that are already on stream for possible pursuance and immediate implementation.

My source further emphasized that detailed discussions on possible cooperation or partnership with China in exploring and developing the alleged vast and rich mineral resources in the claimed Spratlys area of the Philippines is premature during the visit of President Aquino. This is because it is impossible, if not futile, to enter into any dialogue for possible cooperation or partnership without any indication that China will interpose no objection and actively participate in any UN debate or arbitration regarding the claim of the Philippines to some parts of the Spratlys. After all, any cooperation or partnership in any undertaking should start first with what each party has to offer as the basis of its equity in any proposed cooperation or partnership.

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A forum on truth telling with foremost clinical psychologist Dr. Maria Lourdes Carandang will be held Thursday, 4 p.m., at St. Luke’s College of Medicine auditorium in Quezon City.

The conference, “Truth-telling and National Healing: Claiming Our Dignity and Integrity as a People” is sponsored by the MLAC Institute for Children and Families.

Dr. Carandang says, “Lying, which has become normal and a way of life, erodes our self worth and dignity. Our country keeps repeating the same mistakes because we have not really recognized and uncovered the lies to bring out the truth. Without the truth we will never heal, like a wound that is just covered by band-aid but not treated so it festers under the cover-ups.”

Dr. Carandang has been in the news lately for her independent deposition on the child abuse case versus Willy Revillame.

Dr. Carandang will also talk “about building integrity starting in the family, and how children can effectively learn good values that they can carry to adulthood.”

Dr. Carandang is a certified specialist in clinical psychology, counseling psychology and developmental psychology, and former president of the Psychological Association of the Philippines. She has written 12 books on Filipino children and their families for parents, guidance counselors and clinical psychologists in the country.

There will be a fee of P500 for attendees. Proceeds of the seminar will go to parenting workshops for poor families. For reservations and inquiries, call 5699726 or email at [email protected].

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My email: [email protected]