The Philippine presidential election on May 9, arguably the most contentious in decades, will see a new leader assume power because incumbent President Benigno Aquino III is barred from seeking re-election. Since Aquino is responsible for the souring of Beijing-Manila relations by endorsing Washington's "rebalancing to Asia-Pacific" policy over the past six years, the world is waiting to see what the new Philippine government's China policy will be.
Backed by the United States, the Aquino government has constantly sought to challenge China over the South China Sea issue, which, however, has proved to be a fool's errand.
To begin with, Manila's attempt to confront Beijing over its Huangyan Island has failed.
To maintain relations with the Philippines, however, China has exercised exemplary restraint in the island dispute. And the Philippines was expected to reciprocate the gesture for the sake of bilateral ties, which Aquino has long refused.
Encouraged by Washington, Manila sent military vessels to harass Chinese fishing boats and fishermen operating in waters off Huangyan Island in 2012, triggering a two-month confrontation with China's surveillance ships. This prompted Beijing to strengthen its presence on the island, leaving no scope for Manila to encroach upon the Chinese territory.
Thanks to the Aquino administration's accommodative policy, US troops, which the Philippine people fought strenuously to get rid of, are back in the country and will be stationed at five military bases.
Seeking Washington's protection might not be a good move for Manila－it could even be counter-productive－because Philippine soldiers, despite being equipped and trained according to US standards, have not been able to defeat the poorly-equipped anti-government forces.
By selling its Hamilton-class cutters and other advanced weapons to the Philippines, Washington is strengthening its military alliance with Manila.
But the Philippines should realize that it is just a piece on the US chessboard. The US may make use of the Philippines to meddle in the waters of the South China Sea, but it will never get involved if it leads to open confrontation between China and the Philippines. Should a serious conflict break out between Beijing and Manila over the South China Sea issue, which is about China's maritime sovereignty, Washington might prefer to watch from the sidelines because it does not concern the US' core interests.
Manila's provocations such as those around the Huangyan Island and the filing of an arbitration case in its dispute with China in the South China Sea, have a lot to do with the deteriorating bilateral relations, which have dealt a heavy blow to their trade and commercial cooperation.
As such, the incoming Philippine government should recalibrate its China policy.
But the prospects for that do not look encouraging, because the US is likely to take steps to ensure the new Philippine administration keeps serving its "rebalancing to Asia-Pacific" policy.
On the one hand, Washington is expected to ramp up its military aid to Manila in the next five years. On the other, in an attempt to hype up China's legal construction on its South China Sea islands, the US flew six of its military planes through the international airspace near Huangyan Island last month, injecting more uncertainties into China-Philippines ties.
The Aquino government has been trying to justify its hawkish stance on the South China Sea issue and urging the incoming leadership to follow the same policy. Worse, its anti-China propaganda has seriously affected domestic opinion, as more Philippine citizens now seem to distrust China.
Given these facts, the new Philippine administration should take appropriate measures to improve Beijing-Manila ties and seek peaceful solution to bilateral disputes without becoming an expendable part of Washington's Asia-Pacific maneuver.
By CHEN QINGHONG (China Daily)
The author is a researcher in Southeast Asian studies at the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations.
China has sound reasons to reject South China Sea arbitration
An aerial photo taken on Sept. 25, 2015 from a seaplane of Hainan Maritime Safety Administration shows the Yacheng 13-1 drilling rig during a patrol in South China Sea.(Xinhua file photo/Zhao Yingquan)
CCTV have talked to Victor Gao, the Director of the China
National Association of International Studies. He says whatever the
ruling is, the end result may be the opposite of what the Philippine
government wants http://t.cn/RqEfUgE
KUALA LUMPUR: Abu Sayyaf-linked gunmen have
demanded RM36.4mil for the release of a 29-year-old Chinese woman
tourist whom they abducted from a resort off Semporna in Sabah, said
Home Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
He added that there had been no ransom demand for the other hostage, a 40-year-old Filipina resort worker.
“We have received a note that the kidnappers have asked for 500 million pesos, equivalent to RM36.4mil, in ransom.
“We have sent our team, the police and negotiators to discuss with
their so-called appointed middle person to negotiate about reducing the
ransom,” he said after launching the “Message from Prison” segment of
TV3’s Wanita Hari Ini programme here yesterday.
Gao Huayun and Marcy Dayawan were snatched from Singamata Reef Resort in Semporna on April 2.
One of the kidnappers is believed to be also involved in the
abduction of a Taiwanese woman who was snatched on Pom Pom Island on Nov
15 last year after gunmen shot dead her husband.
To a question, Dr Ahmad Zahid denied that the Eastern Sabah Security
Command was a failure, saying Esscom was merely carrying out its
activities based on the Standard Operating Procedure that had been set
for Esszon, the Eastern Sabah Security Zone.
He added that Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak had a
meeting recently with the members of the National Security Council on
tightening security in the area.
“We are going to tighten the activities within Esszon ... (more)
equipment and assets are to be deployed within the Esszon area.”
Dr Ahmad Zahid said the police, military and Malaysian Maritime
Enforcement Agency were working together and collaborating with the
Philippine coast guard, navy and military on further tightening
security.
Zahid said they would seek the cooperation from the resort operators
within the Esszon area and ask them to install high-security cameras.
“We are going to ask them to install high-definition CCTV in all
their premises to prevent future activities by intruders or kidnappers,”
he added.
Sources: contributed by Florence A. Samy The Star/Asia News Network
PERTH: Malaysia is not ruling out the possibility that the latest
abduction case at a resort off Semporna was a deliberate act to sour the
country’s relations with China, says Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib
Tun Razak.
He said the fact that one of those kidnapped was a
Chinese national could complicate the situation further following the
disappearance of MH370, which had mostly Chinese nationals on board.
“There may be those who are attempting to drive a wedge between China
and us. They may be trying to take advantage of the situation,” Najib
said after a bilateral meeting with his Australian counterpart Tony
Abbott at the Commonwealth Parliamentary Office here.
Najib, however, believes ties with China will remain strong despite the kidnap incident.
Najib said Malaysia had sought the cooperation of Filipino authorities
on the matter, while police were investigating how the incident could
have happened.
A news portal had reported that rebel group Abu Sayyaf was responsible for the abduction.
Filipino military sources told Rappler.com that the two women were taken by six former Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) members who had joined Abu Sayyaf.
In Kota Kinabalu, Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman has ordered
that all available resources be directed towards solving the kidnapping
case at a resort in Semporna.
He said the Eastern Sabah Security Command (Esscom) director-general Datuk Mohammad Mentek had briefed him on the kidnapping.
A formation of the Nanhai Fleet of China's Navy on Saturday finished a three-day patrol of the Nansha islands in the South China Sea.
