Hontiveros: Bring West PH Sea issue to UN

by BERNADETTE E. TAMAYO ManilaTimes.net

SEN. Ana Theresia “Risa” Hontiveros urged the government to bring the West Philippine Sea (WPS) issue to the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA). The senator joined the recent call of retired Justice Antonio Carpio for China to stop its aggressive actions. She asked the Department of Foreign Affairs to sponsor a resolution before the UNGA that will call on China to stop its harassment of Filipino vessels in the WPS.

Sen. Risa Hontiveros

ManilaTimes.net file photo

She said that “a UN General Assembly Resolution, while not legally binding, carry significant political weight and serve as expressions of the will and consensus of the international community, with the potential to shape international norms, influence national policies, and provide guidance for the work of other UN organs, specialized agencies, and regional organizations.”

“As far back as 2016, through the landmark Arbitral ruling, it has been established that there was no legal basis for China our fundamental law,” he said. Marcos also assured his audience of the continued implementation of the FOI program in the executive branch and among all government agencies, as he urged them “to genuinely uphold and give effect to the people’s FOI in the course of our day-to-day operations, with good faith and with openness.”

“[T]he FOI program has greatly advanced the campaign against misinformation and disinformation in the country—a problem that we in the Philippines also suffer from as, I guess,  PAGE 3