The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) of the Philippines on Wednesday rejected China’s claim of sovereignty over parts of the South China Sea, saying this contradicts China’s claim to be a peace-loving nation which respects the principles of international law. “The DFA statement is an open challenge to China’s claim to be a peace-loving nation which observes the principles of international law,” the DFA said in a statement late Wednesday.

The DFA said China’s claim of sovereignty over parts of the South China Sea “contradicts China’s image of a peace-loving nation which respects the principles of international law.” The DFA’s rejection of China’s sovereignty claim over disputed areas of the South China Sea shows that smaller countries such as the Philippines are still in a long and difficult struggle to enforce international law in the face of pressure from stronger nations.

The Philippines’ territorial claim over part of the South China Sea is based on a 2016 Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) ruling that invalidated China’s nine-dash line claim to the area and confirmed the country’s sovereign rights to Scarborough Shoal and Thitu Island. China rejected the ruling and has been engaging in activities incompatible with the ruling while describing itself as a “benevolent” power that respects the sovereignty of all other countries, at the same time that it is acting in a way that is incompatible with that characterisation of itself.

China’s actions speak louder than its words. The construction of artificial islands and the bullying of Philippine, Vietnamese and Malaysian vessels and ships are in clear breach of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. China’s rejection of the principles of the convention by imposing its own exclusive interpretation of the rights and interests of other parties while disregarding the legitimate decisions of other parties also raises several questions. Can China still call itself a member of the........

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