|
FORMER
senior government officials have urged the government to
act swiftly for the passage of the amended baselines law
that adheres to the provisions of the United Nations
Convention on the Law of the Sea (Unclos) to enable the
state to protect its maritime jurisdiction on economic
zones, areas that are strategic for national security
and environmental management.
Former
senator Leticia Ramos Shahani, head of the Former Senior
Government Officials (FSGO) organization, said the
Philippines, classified as an archipelago based on
Unclos criteria, needs to revise its baselines since
this will be to the country’s advantage.
The UN
body has set May 13, 2009, as the deadline for
archipelagic states to pass a definitive baselines law
and submit it to the UN.
“As
signatories to Unclos, it is our duty within the realms
of international law to abide by its provisions while
maintaining our sovereignty, while upholding historical
claims with regard to our national territory, and while
respecting other bilateral and multilateral agreements
that affect claims to maritime territories,” said
Shahani in a statement issued on Monday.
She
stressed that it was the Philippines, through its
representative to the convention “who proposed the
concept of the archipelagic doctrine; evolved it,
defended it, and had it accepted by the conference.”
The
former legislator said amending the baselines law that
adheres to Unclos provisions should not be clouded by
the issues on corruption such as the ZTE-NBN deal and
the undertakings of the Philippines with China and
Vietnam for the Joint Marine Seismic Undertaking.
“The
territorial integrity and the sovereignty of the
Philippines are at stake,” said Shahani. “The final
decision on the baselines will affect the Philippines
for generations to come.”
She said
while debates are ongoing in Congress and Senate on the
options to be adopted on the revised baselines law,
other island and archipelagic countries have started
conducting technical surveys to determine their maritime
baselines. Baselines that must be identified include the
country’s extended continental shelf based on the
criteria of Unclos.
“It is
high time we maximize the options provided by the Unclos
as the May 2009 deadline approaches,” said Shahani. |
