‘Either you’re with us, or against us’

The other night at the Manila Overseas Press Club diplomatic forum with Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario as our guest, questions unsurprisingly revolved on the current Lahad Datu, Sabah standoff and the country’s move to bring the territorial dispute with China to a UN arbitration body. We had a full-house forum despite the fact that we held it for the first time outside Makati — at the new Crimson Hotel in Alabang — with local media, members of the Foreign Correspondents Association and a large number of diplomats and businessmen in attendance. The usual “aggressively inquisitorial” style of our moderator Tony Lopez and his tricky questions did not make Secretary Del Rosario lose his consistently cool, calm and collected style of answering the questions.

It’s clear the situation in Sabah is very serious — one that could impact relations with a friendly ASEAN nation — whose support we badly need at this time when we are in a far more serious dispute with a powerful country like China. While both Malaysia and the Philippines are bent on resolving the standoff as peacefully and as quietly as possible — this could turn ugly if not handled carefully.

Although Sabah is recognized as a state under Malaysia, clear historical records show that it was owned by the sultans of Sulu, with the British even paying rent in the past. In fact, the Malaysian government continues to make lease payments to the heirs of the sultanate of Sulu, and even if the amount is considered a pittance (less than P80,000 a year), the payments are irrefutable proof that Malaysia recognizes the claim of the Sulu heirs.

However, this “occupy Sabah” position is not helping promote the peaceful resolution of the issue, and neither does it advance the legality of our claim. The timing for this problem down south could not have been worse since it comes just when we are at a critical crossroad in the path towards lasting peace in Mindanao — and for which we again need the help and cooperation of countries like Malaysia. It is no wonder that the administration is furious and suspects someone or some group is out to sabotage the peace process.

President Aquino is not alone in his suspicions. In Malaysia, some quarters are claiming that the “invasion” was “staged” to give certain leaders media mileage and turn them into heroes once the standoff is resolved — coming as it is just before the elections in Malaysia. Some even claim that the “invasion” is a scare tactic to make the people of Sabah vote for the ruling coalition.

For sure, nobody welcomes aggressive behavior especially when it comes to complicated territorial disputes — which is what China has been doing all this time, displaying “excessive claim,” clearly violating international law. This aggression leaves the Philippines with very little choice but to pursue a legal approach after numerous bilateral consultations that have not diminished the bellicose attitude of the Chinese, trying to legitimize their claim by establishing a city government that they plan to have jurisdiction over the Paracels and the Spratlys. As our friends from the United States bluntly put it, and we quote US Navy’s Pacific Fleet Commander Captain James Fanell — “China has taken an attitude of what’s mine is mine and we’ll negotiate what is yours” as far as the disputed territories are concerned.

As it is, our country’s maritime entitlements, our fishing rights, our ability to harness our natural resources as well as the power to enforce our laws in our exclusive economic zone as provided for by the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) is already being undermined. The Philippines’ only option is to elevate the issue to a UN international tribunal — to determine once and for all the “entitlement claims” of China. Many of our allies applauded the decision of the Philippines, and while there was no official indication of support, it’s pretty obvious that the territorial dispute is being closely watched by many countries because of the potential global ramifications.

We all know our country does not have the military might to go head-to-head against an economic, political and military giant like China, so we continue to count on allies like the United States to help us develop a minimum credible defense posture via capacity building, interoperability, joint trainings and exercises, among others. Even a friendly ally like Canada is weighing in, seen in the “goodwill visit” last week of the Royal Canadian Navy ship Regina to “strengthen friendly relations” with the Philippines. There are now 800,000 Filipinos living and working in Canada — a country that has become a favorite destination for many Filipinos.

Those who were not born before the war do not ever want to experience what it’s like to be colonized or occupied by another country because you literally turn into a second class citizen in your own country — which could be the worst thing that could ever happen to us. No self-respecting Filipino would ever want to be under any foreign rule — even if, as Manuel Quezon put it — it sometimes feels like the country is run like hell by Filipino politicians.

After the 9-11 attack on the United States, an angry George Bush uttered his famous line challenging America’s allies to join in the fight against terrorism: “Either you’re with us, or against us.” This should be the same bottom line for Filipinos — to band together, rally behind the flag and support the government’s pursuit in resolving sovereignty disputes — not with violence or aggression or “occupy Sabah” stunts, but the only way we know possible: through peaceful means.

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