Chinese maritime police prevented 15 Filipinos, along with a US citizen, from hoisting the national flag of the Philippines on an island in the South China Sea, the latest flashpoint between the two nations locked in a UN arbitration over maritime disputes in the strategic region.
The group was intercepted by two motor boats driven by Chinese maritime police on June 12, state media here reported today.
The group belonged to the Kalayaan ATIN ITO ((Freedom It's Ours) and wanted to land onthe Huangyan Island- claimed by China and the Philippines - to celebrate their Independence Day.
Also Read
The fishing boat they took was spotted and intercepted by two motor boats from the Chinese maritime police who asked the "interlopers" to go back, state-run china.Org.Cn reported.
The confrontation there lasted for four hours, it said.
Five Philippine citizens onboard were trying to swim to the Huangyan Island to place their national flag as well as the UN flag.
Two Philippine citizens swam to the surrounding area of the island raised their country flag and left, the report said.
China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs has reiterated that the Huangyan Island is an integral part of China's territory and any actions that China launches there are within the country's sovereign rights for legitimate concerns.
The Philippines has initiated and pushed forward with international arbitral proceedings regarding the dispute with China in the South China Sea.
China claims virtually all of the SCS and rejects the court's authority in the case, which is widely expected to go in favour of the Philippines.
China claims all most all of South China Sea. Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan have counter claims.
The white paper attacked the Philippines saying that
Manila turned a blind eye to bilateral consensus, has repeatedly taken moves that complicate the relevant disputes, gradually intensified them between China and the Philippines in the South China Sea.
The Philippines built military facilities on some islands and reefs of China's Nansha Qundao (the Nansha Islands/Spratly islands) it has invaded and illegally occupied.
The Philippines deliberately destroyed survey markers set up by China and attempted to illegally occupy China's Ren'ai Jiao by using a military vessel illegally run around it.
The Philippines also has territorial pretencions on China's Huangyan Dao and attempted to occupy it illegally, deliberately causing the Huangyan Dao Incident, it said.
The Philippines has intruded into relevant maritime areas of China's Nansha Qundao to carry out illegal oil and gas exploratory drilling and bidding.
The Philippines has repeatedly harassed and attacked Chinese fishermen and fishing boats conducting routine fishing operations, according to the white paper.
In January 2013, the then government of the Republic of the Philippines unilaterally initiated the South China Sea arbitration.
By doing so, the Philippines has violated its standing agreement with China to settle the relevant disputes through bilateral negotiation, has violated China's right to choose means of dispute settlement of its own will as a State Party to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), and has abused the UNCLOS dispute settlement procedures, it said.
"The Philippines has distorted facts, misinterpreted laws and concocted a pack of lies, in an attempt to deny China's territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests in the South China Sea," it said.
The Arbitral Tribunal established at the Philippines' unilateral request has no jurisdiction over relevant submissions, and awards rendered by it are null and void and have no binding force, the white paper said.
China's territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests in the South China Sea shall under no circumstances be affected by those awards.
China does not accept or recognise those awards.
China opposes and will never accept any claim or action based on those awards, it said.
