No softening of ties with China while Aquino is here

WITH lots of luck and political will, Sen. Bongbong Marcos’ strong stand against the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law in its present form, and the possible voiding by the Supreme Court of all unconstitutional agreements between President B. S. Aquino 3rdand the Moro Islamic Liberation Front could still prevent the threat of balkanization and civil war between the MILF and the rest of the population in southern Philippines. But the threat of a much bigger war does not end there. Its shadow will continue to loom large on the horizon for as long as we have a government that believes the best way to deal with China, which has been building islands and various facilities on disputed maritime areas in the West Philippine/South China Sea, is to deny her any opportunity to make amends for any mistakes she may have committed against the Philippines.

We have rightfully protested China’s island- and infrastructure-building in the disputed areas she controls. But without yielding one inch on her claim over these areas, China has offered to share with Filipino fishermen the use of the facilities, whose construction we have condemned. This, to me, seems to be a loosening of her hardline position, which deserves to be studied and tested before it is formally accepted or rejected. But Aquino’s knee jerk response was to automatically reject it, without consulting any of his foreign policy and national security advisers, and without giving Beijing a chance to demonstrate the sincerity of its offer. The situation between Manila and Beijing has never been good since China’s reclamation activities began; now it is even worse.