By Reni M. Valenzuela
Time to draw the line.
China does more than acts of robbing the West Philippine Sea (WPS) or South China Sea. It is already treating the entire contested body of waters as its own, notwithstanding they have nothing to contest about it in light of the 2016 verdict by the Permanent Court of Arbitration. The international ruling belied China’s “nine-dash line” maps, not to mention the statutes that bind every country, vis-a-vis the United Nations Convention on the Law of Sea which is averse to China’s aggressions over and assertions to the WPS.
Thanks to the kowtowing of the previous “wise” and “godly” Duterte administration to demigod China.Despicable. The crisis has worsened, terribly.
The present Chinese officials are uniquely different and dangerous as compared to their counterparts in their nation’s history. They are masters at reversing scenarios (psychologically) in the minds of people and nations just to get away with their transgressions and to get what they want come hell or high water -- those that don’t belong to them. Ergo, they are now (oddly) the ones accusing the Philippines of “deplorable acts of infringement and provocation” in the aftermath of the recent collision of vessels by the two countries in Ayungin Shoal. Entertaining.
A million note verbales and diplomatic protests from the Philippine government, let alone our intent to file a case against China in the United Nations, the Chinese won’t still budge for sure, obviously. They are employing every single deceptive scheme within their communistic power to rob the sea -- by hook or by crook.
And, comical, China always accuses the US of interference and wants the Western superpower out of the picture when as a matter of fact the US is not in the picture and not making itself a party to the problem, much less doing anything to “inflate” the tensions as they often alleged. The US will come to the picture only in the event that the Philippines will be attacked by any foreign country. And China hates it. But we love it. US President Joe Biden assured Filipinos, “Any attack on the Filipino aircraft, vessels, or armed forces will invoke... our Mutual Defense Treaty with the Philippines.”
So, what’s next?
Boycott China.
Since we, Filipinos, are peace-loving people, we don’t want war to erupt between us and any country in the world. However, dear China, we are prepared to put everything on the line and be heroic to defend our own or our beloved country. Should the situation calls for it, Filipinos will not hesitate to fight or fight back as proven by our heroes and martyrs of the past -- in the face of your lingering threats, continuing bully antics and trampling on our sovereign rights and dignity. One more collision of vessels between our two countries may mean something else, much less if there is any loss of life on our side as a result of the collision and your damnable, illegal presence in the WPS.
Yet there is every reason to avoid wars if there is a way to do it.
Here’s the way: Boycott China for everything that it has to do with us as a people and nation. And then let the world follow suit as every country is morally bound to do so and as each one would see the need, imperative and urgency of the act -- if only for the world to help mitigate and tranquilize this highly potential tipping point for war in a wider, greater scale -- massive and catastrophic as it can be.