Former foreign affairs secretary Albert del Rosario on Tuesday urged President Rodrigo Duterte to stop using the "narrative of war" in defending the West Philippine Sea as there are other ways the country could assert its rights in the disputed area.
Del Rosario, who led the Philippines' arbitration bid against Chinese incursions that culminated in victory in 2016, made the remark after the President reiterated his belief that defending the country's rights in the West Philippine Sea would only lead to bloodshed and violence.
The area covers the Philippines' exclusive economic zone (EEZ) in the South China Sea, which China claims in near entirety.
The disputed area is a major trade route believed to hold valuable oil and gas deposits.
The former top diplomat said that war is not an option for the country when it comes to such matters, following Chinese President Xi Jinping's threat that there would we war should the country insist on its arbitral win.
"We respectfully urge the President to reject this Chinese narrative of war, because it is intended to scare countries to submit to China’s will of illegally occupying the South China Sea," he said.
When Duterte invoked the 2016 arbitral win invalidating China's historical nine-dash line claim during the United Nations (UN) General Assembly last year, China did not wage a war, Del Rosario said.
"We do not see a war being waged by China against us. This should have put to rest the utterly inane notion that invoking the Arbitral Ruling and standing up for our rights are equivalent to waging war against China," he added.
China, however, has refused to honor the ruling, instead ramping up island-building and militarization activities in the waters.
Del Rosario's statement came amid China's incursions in Julian Felipe Reef, also called Whitsun Reef, in the West Philippine Sea.
Demands of Filipino officials for Beijing to withdraw its maritime fleet in the reef prompted the country's allies, such as US and Japan, to voice out their concerns on China's incursion there, with other countries "formally supporting" the 2016 ruling, he pointed out.
"In the past few days, we managed to pressure China to disperse its vessels in Julian Felipe... Reef, not through war or bloodshed, but through the courageous assertion of our rights by our officials and soldiers," Del Rosario said.
The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) had earlier demanded the withdrawal of Chinese ships in the waters, calling it illegal.
Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin, Jr. also vowed to file diplomatic protests every day until the last Chinese ship from the reef is gone.
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