Joselito Malig

Article (news)

Carlos Trazo

ABS-CBN News

MANILA - Philippine Coast Guard spokesperson Rear Admiral Jay Tarriela on Saturday rejected the Chinese Embassy’s latest statement on the West Philippine Sea, saying Beijing merely repeats arguments that have already been settled by international law.Tarriela said the embassy’s claim that China has long exercised sovereignty over features in the South China Sea rests on a “legally bankrupt narrative” that had been “thoroughly examined—and rejected—by the 2016 Arbitral Award under UNCLOS,” which he stressed is “final and binding.”Responding to the embassy’s criticism of a recent lecture by British author and researcher Bill Hayton, Tarriela dismissed allegations of bias, saying the presentation was “a factual, evidence-based” discussion grounded in primary sources, including Chinese government archives. He noted that Hayton’s work has been peer reviewed and published by reputable journals and publishers.Tarriela said the lecture showed that China’s nine-dash line and its claims of sweeping “historic rights” are “a 20th-century construct based on inaccurate historical accounts,” tracing their origins to a 1930s map marked by mistranslations and selective interpretations. He stressed that such claims fall far short of proving “first discovery” or the “continuous exercise” of sovereignty cited by Beijing.Addressing the embassy’s assertion that Chinese fishermen’s place names point to sovereignty, Tarriela said that toponyms “prove nothing about sovereignty under international law,” emphasizing that “naming features does not create title” and that effective control, not folklore or selective map reading, is what matters legally.Tarriela also rejected the embassy’s reference to the work of international law scholar Anthony Carty, saying this “selective reading of colonial-era archives” contradicts the unanimous findings of the 2016 arbitral tribunal and the conclusions of many established historians. He said a single contested interpretation cannot override a binding legal ruling.He pushed back strongly against China’s claim that the dispute stems from a “Philippine invasion,” saying the real issue is “China’s illegal occupation and militarization of features in the West Philippine Sea,” its rejection of the arbitral award, and its “constant violations of Philippine sovereign rights” through water cannon attacks, blocking maneuvers, swarming, and massive island-building.Tarriela said the Philippines is lawfully exercising sovereignty over the Kalayaan Island Group and Scarborough Shoal and remains committed to asserting its rights within its exclusive economic zone in accordance with UNCLOS and the 2016 ruling. “We occupy what is ours under international law,” he said.Calling China’s stance that “what belongs to us, not an inch can be lost” detached from both law and history, Tarriela said the Kalayaan Island Group and Scarborough Shoal “have never been, and will never be, part of China.”He added that the Philippines will continue to pursue a peaceful and lawful resolution through diplomacy anchored on UNCLOS and the arbitral award, vowing to “document every provocation transparently for the world to see” and to stand with the international community in upholding a rules-based order in the South China Sea.“The fabricated historical narrative will not change the legal reality,” Tarriela said, stressing that the 2016 arbitral award “is not a suggestion—it is the law.&quot;

Philippine Coast Guard spokesperson Rear Admiral Jay Tarriela on Saturday rejected the Chinese Embassy’s latest statement on the West Philippine Sea, saying Beijing merely repeats arguments that have already been settled by international law.

Philippine Coast Guard spokesperson Rear Admiral Jay Tarriela on Saturday rejected the Chinese Embassy’s latest statement on the West Philippine Sea, saying Beijing merely repeats arguments that have already been settled by international law.

Tarriela: Chinese Embassy narrative rejected by 2016 arbitral ruling

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Tarriela: Chinese Embassy narrative rejected by 2016 arbitral ruling

Carlos Trazo,

ABS-CBN News

Published April 19, 2026 01:19 AM PHT

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West Philippine Sea

South China Sea

Spratlys

Philippines

China

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