Final baselines bill a “sell out” – Trillanes

Office of Senator Antonio "Sonny" F. Trillanes IV

Press Release

09 March 2009

Bicam approves Scarborough Shoals as ‘regime of islands’

Senator Antonio Trillanes IV called the approval of the final version of Senate Bill 2699 or the baselines bill a “sell out.” The Senate approved the bicameral conference committee report classifying both the Scarborough Shoal and Kalayaan Islands as a “regime of islands.”

“The tragic part is, we have no choice but to accept it because of the approaching deadline,” said Trillanes, the bill’s principal author. “Otherwise, we would be forever disqualified from claiming our extended continental shelf (ECS).” 

The baselines bill defines the scope of the national territory in compliance with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). The UN had earlier set May 13, 2009 as the deadline for the submission of the technical details on the Philippines’ claims for the ECS but these should only be based on the official baselines as enacted into law. 

His original draft, which included Scarborough Shoal in the archipelagic baselines, was filed as early as August 2007. “And yet the Foreign Relations Committee sat on it for 18 months.” 

He lamented the classification of Scarborough Shoal as a ‘regime of islands’ since according to the UNCLOS, a rock like Scarborough Shoal is not entitled to an exclusive economic zone (EEZ) and ECS. But Trillanes clarified that the same designation on the Kalayaan Islands does not weaken the Philippines’ claim or sovereignty since islands referred to as ‘regime of islands’ are treated the exact same way as other land territory and thus entitled to an EEZ and ECS.

“The exclusion of Scarborough from the baselines is grossly disadvantageous to our country. We would be depriving ourselves of a sea territory with its continental shelf that is equivalent to roughly 14,500 square kilometers,” Trillanes said. He also noted that the Scarborough Shoal is the traditional fishing ground for past and present Filipino fisher folk.

China is the other claimant to the resource-rich territory. 

‘Pressure’ from China

Trillanes alleged that the exclusion of Scarborough Shoal can be attributed to “pressure” from China, which has several investment and development deals with the Arroyo administration. Last year, Trillanes filed a resolution initiating appropriate legislative action against Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita for presiding over a Senate technical working group meeting tackling the bills on the Philippines’ archipelagic baselines, and eventually pushing for Malacanang’s position. He claimed that Ermita violated the constitutionally enshrined principle of separation of powers of the three branches of government.

“Should this be signed into law, we will definitely amend it once GMA is out of power,” Trillanes added.

END