MANILA, Philippines — The “repeated resurrection” of China’s false claims over Batanes is a “clear attempt to manufacture ambiguity” about the Philippines’ sovereignty over its northernmost province, think tank Stratbase Institute said on Sunday.
In a statement, Stratbase Institute president Victor Andres “Dindo” Manhit condemned an opinion piece published by China’s state-run Global Times, which claimed the Philippines “unilaterally brought Batanes Islands under its jurisdiction.”
“Batanes is Philippine territory, its people are Filipinos, and its sovereignty is settled and not up for debate,” Manhit said.
“An opinion piece cannot rewrite history, international agreements, or more than two centuries of continuous Philippine administration,” he added.
READ: Teodoro on Chinese scholars’ Batanes claim: It’s a joke
According to Manhit, the repetition of this claim is a “clear attempt to manufacture ambiguity where none exists.”
He also urged the Philippine government to “not allow such repetition to turn a settled matter of sovereignty into a manufactured dispute.”
READ: Expert rejects claim linking Batanes to China through Ivatan ancestry
“We urge the Philippine government to mount a firm, unified, and sustained response—through diplomacy, law, public information, and effective governance—to reject narratives that undermine the country’s territorial integrity,” Manhit said.
“At the same time, we call on Filipinos, civil society, media, and academe to stand united in defending the facts: Batanes is ours. False narratives must be met with vigilance, credible information, and national resolve,” he added.
Second time
In an opinion piece published on Sept. 3, a certain Wang Yuanyuan wrote that Batanes has been “legally part of the Taiwan island.”
Wang also claimed in his tabloid piece “there is no legal basis to suggest that Batanes Islands fall within the territorial boundaries of the Philippines.”
Wang is an assistant research fellow at the Center for South China Sea History and Culture of the National Institute for South China Sea Studies, which is a state-funded Chinese think tank that operates under the guidance of the Chinese Communist Party to support China’s claims in the South China Sea.
Manila’s defense and foreign affairs departments have yet to comment on this new claim on Batanes.
This was the second time Chinese scholars have resurfaced this claim as the country marked the 10th anniversary of the 2016 arbitral award that invalidated China’s sweeping claims over the South China Sea.
In June, Chinese scholars attending a symposium at Jinan University in Guangzhou claimed that Batanes was a “natural geographical extension” of Taiwan and therefore fell under China’s sovereignty.
Taiwan, Edca
Batanes is composed of 10 islands separated from Taiwan by the narrow Bashi Channel, a passageway between the West Philippine Sea and the Pacific Ocean.
The Armed Forces of the Philippines has an outpost in Batan, the main island of Batanes, while Cagayan province, which is directly across Batanes and Taiwan, has two facilities under the Philippines’ Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (Edca) with the United States.
China still regards Taiwan, which broke away in 1949, as part of its territory.
Revisionist claims
Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. earlier pushed back against these claims, which he said could be part of Beijing’s strategy to advance its territorial claims in the Pacific by taking small steps well below the threshold of conflict.
The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said also earlier that Manila “will not entertain revisionist claims over its territory,” as it urged Chinese scholars to “focus their energies on genuine, good-faith studies of the region.”
“Flights of fancy should not be dignified with a response. Nevertheless, the Philippines’ sovereignty over Batanes is settled and not up for debate,” the DFA said.
Beijing’s foreign ministry previously said it would not comment on the views of the academic community. /cb
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