We’ve all learned about struggles for land and the numerous wars fought over it. But what about the oceans and seas? It turns out that these waters are a key resource, not only for the actual marine wildlife and right to exploration but also for coveted access to land through them. With the amount of trouble agreeing on sovereignty over solid ground, it’s not altogether a surprise that the high seas are causing conflicts of their own. One such clash concerns a body of water south of China and west of the Philippines, so disputed that it’s often referred to by two opposing names: the South China Sea and the West Philippine Sea. For simplicity, here, we’ll call it the South China Sea. This past week, the situation escalated as a Chinese ship rammed into a Filipino vessel near the Spratly Islands. While there were no casualties and China denies any purposefulness behind the collision, the Philippines and many other countries took it as China’s way of staking their so-called territory.
Using an ambiguous 9-dash line boundary, China asserts its right to the majority of the South China Sea, though it’s unclear what exactly these dashes represent. The dashes envelop 90% of the sea into China’s realm, and recently a tenth dash was added to include Taiwan in China’s sovereignty. China’s rationale behind its control of the sea is China’s historical domination and use of the waters in ancient times, which is how they justify their ownership today. Marine geographer Wang Ying insists that each line is fact-oriented and traces back generations. China follows this map religiously and even teaches it to young Chinese schoolchildren despite no validation from the rest of the world. Other countries aren’t so sure about China’s irredentist claims, even as it attempts to authenticate them through dated pottery shards and navigation books- evidence which is not so different from Vietnam, Malaysia, and the Philippines’ archaeological findings. The Chinese maintain that the lines are dashed to show the free passage of other countries through their dominion, but the number of disputes in this area says otherwise.
The South China Sea is particularly valuable, being one of the most trafficked trade routes in the world. Its waters uphold $5 trillion of global trade each year! This global power is what some believe China is really out for- its fabricated boundaries edging dangerously close to the Philippines especially. Their actions are a direct violation of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) of 1982 which, interestingly, China is a party to but the US is not. The Law of the Sea gives complete sovereignty within the first twelve miles of sea beyond a country’s baselines, partial sovereignty up to 24 nautical miles, and an exclusive economic zone for sole exploration rights up to 200 nautical miles from land territory. The median line method accounts for overlapping maritime boundaries, splitting the ownership equally. Yet an obvious act against UNCLOS, China has begun to build artificial islands in place of coral reefs in the Spratly Islands, which also drew an outcry from environmentalists. To this day, the Chinese have created seven artificial islands (3,200 acres) and are still expanding. But resorts are not exactly what they had in mind, and China looks to be building up its military base in a part of the sea that’s closer to other South East Asian countries than to China itself! This isn’t just a threat to the countries’ security but a threat to the well-being of individuals.
Filipino fishermen live- and support their families- off of their net catch. But with China jeopardizing easy access to fertile waters, they aren’t able to thrive and are struggling. One specific bank, Scarborough Shoal, was the subject of tension between China and the Philippines in 2012. A court ruling actually found that China’s extensive claims were baseless and the Philippines reserved the right to sea within their exclusive economic zone. Yet China never honored that verdict, and the Filipino, ill-equipped to do anything about it, are feeling the impact now. Over the past ten years, 627,000 fishers have lost their professions due to China’s aggressive motions in the South China Sea.
Recently, this topic has gained more attention through the media and the possibility of a conflict soon seems likely. Many western countries have been protesting China’s actions, particularly the United States. There are fears that China’s dominance in the South China Sea will allow them to restrict trade around the world. Furthermore, the Philippines, a main party in the disputed territory, is a close ally of the US in a mutual defense agreement, meaning that the US is fully prepared to back the Filipino militarily. The US also supports Taiwan and their right to self-determination, contrary to China’s stance. As tension rises, it’s unsure what the next steps will be, but one thing’s for sure: however this settles, the ripples will spread far beyond the South China Sea.
Works Cited:
Beddall, Kate, et al. “Filipino Fishermen Feel Effects from Beijing’s
Expansionism in South China Sea.” BenarNews. BenarNews, www.benarnews.org/
english/news/in-focus/filipino-fishermen/index.html. Accessed 31 Oct. 2023.
Beech, Hannah. “Just Where Exactly Did China Get the South China Sea Nine-Dash
Line From?” Time, 19 July 2016, time.com/4412191/
nine-dash-line-9-south-china-sea/. Accessed 31 Oct. 2023.
—. “What’s New on China’s Artificial Islands in the South China Sea?
Basketball Courts.” Time, 22 May 2016, time.com/4341510/
south-china-sea-artificial-islands/. Accessed 31 Oct. 2023.
Ratcliffe, Rebecca. “The Philippines Summons Chinese Ambassador after Two South
China Sea Collisions.” The Guardian, 23 Oct. 2023, www.theguardian.com/
world/2023/oct/23/
china-philippines-ships-boats-collision-south-china-sea-vessels-spratly-islands.
Accessed 31 Oct. 2023.
