Filipinos stage picket outside Chinese consulate in LA
LOS ANGELES - Several Filipino protesters staged a rally outside the Chinese consulate here to mark the second anniversary of the landmark international court ruling that favored the Philippines and invalidated China's excessive claims in the South China Sea.
This even as the government recently said it has been asserting the country's sovereignty over its exclusive economic zone (EEZ) in the contested waters.
"ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) countries will follow the lead of the Philippines to defend their territories in the South China Sea. But as we know the Philippines is beholden to China because of the "Build, Build, Build" idea of Duterte, which is actually "Steal, Steal, Steal"," activist Art Garcia said.
Garcia was referring to government's P8-trillion infrastructure program, for which it was looking to secure loans from China.
The protests also came after red banners were hung in several Manila footbridges that declared Philippines a province of China.
"When Filipinos become jubilant and turn it into a joke then the government of Duterte is a big joke to the Filipinos," Garcia added.
The demonstrators hoped that lawmakers from the United States would intervene in the case.
US Senate Bill 1055 or the Philippines Human Rights Accountability and Counternarcotics Act of 2017 carries provisions against China's military presence in the South China Sea.
It also "prohibits exporting defense articles or services, or issuing licenses for export of any item controlled by the United States for law enforcement, riot control, or related purposes, for use by the Philippine National Police or associated entities, with exceptions for the exportation of defense articles or the provision of training for maritime law enforcement, criminal justice programs, human rights training, or counter-terrorism programs for such police."
The bill, which has eight co-sponsors, has been sent to the US Senate's Foreign Affairs Committee.
The demonstrators also believe that recent trade tariffs the US had placed on China would work in the Philippines favor.
"The United States is already waking up to red Chinese hegemony, greed and abuse of weaker and less wealthy countries in Southeast Asia," said Vangie Lara, organizer of China Out of Philippines.
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