THE House of Representatives on Monday endorsed for the Senate approval the bill declaring the maritime zones under the jurisdiction of the Republic of the Philippines.
This after lawmakers—voting 189 affirmative and 0 negative—approved on third and final reading House Bill 9981 declaring the maritime zones of the Philippines in order to establish the legal bases by which social, economic, commercial, and other activities may be conducted thereat.
The bill provides flexibility in enacting laws pertinent to the rights and obligations that the Philippines can exercise over its maritime zones.
The measure also provides a general declaration of the maritime zones under the jurisdiction of the Philippines. The various maritime zones include internal waters, archipelagic waters, territorial sea, contiguous zone, exclusive economic zone (EEZ), and continental shelf.
It claims the maximum extent of territorial sea (12 nautical miles), contiguous zone (24 nautical miles), EEZ (200 nautical miles), and continental shelf (200 nautical miles).
The bill allows the delineation in accordance with Article 76 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (Unclos) of continental shelves extending beyond 200 nautical miles.
The measure provides for the sovereign rights over these maritime zones, thus establishing the Philippines’s exclusive rights to explore and exploit living and nonliving resources found in these zones, in accordance with the Unclos and other existing laws and treaties.
It also provides for the exercise of jurisdiction over these zones with regard to rights and duties provided for in the Unclo.
House Committee on Foreign Affairs Chairperson Ann K. Hofer said the bill was crafted in close consultation with officials from the Executive Branch and members of the academe and civil society.
Explaining the bill’s impact, Hofer pointed out that, taken together with the bill on the Archipelagic Sea Lanes, the Philippine Maritime Zones Act brings to realization the other half of said twin measures which will complete the Philippines’s archipelagic house.
“The approval of HB 9981 marks an important step towards consolidating our maritime jurisdiction as declared in the historic Arbitral Award,” she said.
Hofer also expressed optimism that the Senate’s counterpart bill for HB 9981 will see swift passage and that the measure will eventually be signed into law before the end of the 18th Congress.