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CHAPTER V: CONCLUSION
Above all the literatures in the South China Sea (SCS) crisis, most focuses in the factors of politics, power, and interests of states. It provides a traditional form of political analysis in international relations. Such became the motivation of this thesis to look beyond the traditional form of analysis in the SCS and present a new sphere of civic perspective in the crisis which is not deeply discussed in present literatures today.
In the very beginning, this thesis is grounded in discovering the impact of the SCS dispute in the Filipino fishermen’s life stories. Such includes the transition of their situation before, during and after the Philippines filed a case against China and the identification of the possible effects of the factors of nationality, fishing experiences, environment and the Philippine government actions in their SCS life stories and perspectives. To form a general conclusion that will be elaborated throughout this section, I conclude that the asymmetric relations structure of the Philippine-China relations is the foundation of the Philippine’s failure of adequate strategies and policies in the SCS which will eventually formulate an effect to the life experiences of its people operating under the region. That in the end, the SCS crisis’s greater victims are the Filipino fishermen as it permanently changes the life conditions in which no civic empowerment or actions can assists their needs as it failed to be recognized by the Philippine government all because of the asymmetric attention present within the Sino-Philippine relations.
The beginning of the Philippine’s policies and strategies does not prioritize the claims in the SCS. Despite the early risks and threat of China’s actions and expansionist movement from the 1970’s, the Philippines have no adequate plans nor actions to counter such vulnerabilities. This is due to the limited economic power of the country which affects the development of military capabilities. However, this weakness and motionless stance eventually impacts heavily its people behind the SCS.
From the early findings in the fishermen life stories before all the dispute and case in the SCS, the roots of all fishing ventures in the Scarborough shoal is filled with peace and humanitarian exchanges both from local fishermen and fishermen from other nationalities. This period
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completely showed the abundance of the mutual concession and compromises culture around the area in the benefit of all fishermen. Such only shifted after China’s gradual presence in the region which imposed a controlled fishing venture around the Scarborough shoal and eventually created all disputes and competition in the area. Since the Philippines has no capabilities to stand against PRC and protect its rights, the clear arrival of China with its expansionist actions and strategies destroyed the founded culture of peace present in which although disputed from the very beginning, the problems of the dispute are not present beforehand.
By the time that the Philippines filed a case against the PRC in Hague, it further provoked China to employ an aggressive and coercive stance in the region which is seen in the worsen conditions of the Filipino fishermen of Kalburo. Again, without any capabilities in protecting the life, properties and its territories, the suffering will be handled by its people. Reiterated in their life stories, all fishing access drastically change since China unconditionally removed the Filipino fishing rights around the area by complete control of access and entries against all Filipino flagged fishing vessels. Such is not only validated in the Filipino fishermen of Scarborough shoal experience as other same incidences were covered by various Philippine news agency. Asking for the role and response of the Philippine government towards the protection of its people, there was no contact, action nor motions made in behalf of its people’s safety and security. Patently, the effects were solely managed and burned by the regular Filipino fishermen including the inflicted fear and danger situation around the fishing grounds as Chinese authorities violently guards and supervise the area by physical hazards and threats through water hose and cannon attacks.
Moreover, other aggressive actions of China in exploiting the marine environment system of the SCS also rose as a factor in the sufferings of the Filipino fishermen as it created a rippling effect on the situations in the area since it destroyed marine environment which badly shifted the fishing volume and income of the Filipino fishermen. Clearly, it produced a greater dilemma in the Scarborough shoal’s situation not only in the context of inaccessibility of fishing but also in its situation as its severely destroyed and unsustainable which will take years of rehabilitation.
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Looking after the results of the PCA, it created a promising hope for the improvement of the Filipino fishermen’s situation towards their access in the traditional fishing grounds. While it favors the Philippines and comprehensively provides the rights and freedom of its people to operate the area, it also presented the realities of the Philippine government complete weakness and China’s total power and control of the Scarborough shoal which disregarded the implication of such awards. This is further seen in the actual life stories of the Filipino fishermen experiences after the PCA award as it greatly lies in inconsistencies and instabilities of access around the SCS which is controlled by the PRC’s authorities. Evidently, such awards favoring the country did not benefit nor improve the situation of these individuals as the Philippines has a weak military and law enforcement. In the end, such weakness is the source of suffering for the Filipino fishermen of Kalburo and it will continuously evolve and develop as long as the rights and territories in the SCS is not protected.
Raising the context of the Philippine government’s knowledge on the situation and experiences of its people, such is answered as a notedly prominent civic social movement appeared to raise the issue both in the domestic and international community in behalf of the Filipino fishermen’s experiences, callings and rights. The actions of Kalayaan Atin Ito (KAI) comprehensively embodies the Filipino civic community perspective in the SCS dispute. It created series of actions and activities that portray the notion of patriotism and nationalism of the country.
However, this power of civic movements is greatly limited without the support of the national government itself. Then again in the context of KAI, the extent of their influence both in the fellow Filipinos and public policies are impossible to measure.
Meanwhile, from all the discussed transition of the Filipino fishermen’s situation, it is clear that all China’s coercive demeanors and strategies in the SCS immensely affect the whole life experiences of the Filipino fishermen of Scarborough shoal in the context of fishing livelihood grounds and access, volume catch and income, and further exposure to greater dangers and threat. But, from the explorations of this study, the connection of the Philippine government’s failure to protect the rights of its country and people from the very beginning of the SCS dispute served as the main factor for the loss of rights and fishing grounds of the Filipino fishermen of Kalburo.
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As we look closely on the actions of the Philippine government in the SCS, the failure of the country to create a strategy in protecting its rights in the region is largely based on the nation’s economic weakness. Such impacted the limited development of the Philippines maritime security and law enforcement capabilities which can help protect its rights and territories. Without these adequate capabilities, the ability to ensure the protection of a nation’s territory is in jeopardy.
On the other side, the case of this Philippines economic weakness in the region also connects to the higher problem of a weaker state facing a greater regime which is seen from the very
beginning of the Sino-Philippine relations. As its established on the basis of asymmetric
relations, the partnership with China is a vital interaction for the Philippines as it is in desperate needs of economic power and development and because of China’s larger presence both in the international sphere of the Philippines and the region, it is evident that the associations between the two countries lies in asymmetric relations. From this, it is also clear that the asymmetric relations influenced all the basis of the Philippines claims and stance in the SCS in which is highly limited because of the importance of China’s role in the Philippine’s progress and development.
Also, the over attention of the Philippines to the actions and existence of the PRC in the region formulates a less coordinated policies which includes intermittent and crisis-oriented attention in the SCS crisis. Such also disabled the proper creation of a strategic plans and actions in the SCS without the counteraction against China and just with the future benefit of the country’s claim and territory.
In the view of the above, it is evident that Brantly Womack’s theory of Asymmetric relations proved the limitation of the actions and strategies of the Philippines in the South China Sea as it’s a smaller country influenced by the larger China’s presence. Such limitation is the main factor for all the in activities, inadequate policies and sufferings of the Filipino fishermen in the SCS. It clearly links that the over attention limits the role of the smaller state to its domestic arena, which in the end the people within the country suffers.
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In the context of the power and influence of a civic perspective, the theory did not provide a clean explanation on the smaller power’s domestic arena as its focuses on the international state’s relations and connections. This is the limitations as the inattention of smaller state in its domestic issue may or may not cause the weak influence of civic perspective movements in to public policies. Although the success and failure of any movement are proven limitedly, such phenomenon does not create a clean connection between the weakness of civic perspective and the government system political changes.
In the end, the continuous utilization of the Philippines in the SCS dispute as a powerful card is not an effective way to protect its claims and people. That without the Philippines’ real and established claims in the SCS that is based on the benefit of its country and people’s need, the larger suffering lies on the people working within the area of the SCS.
While this research focuses and limitations is to present a new perspective in the SCS by discovering the Filipino Fishermen’s civic perspective in the dispute, the further
recommendation lies on the conduction of other research focusing on the same issue in other claimants in the SCS to further form a general sense of each nation’s civic power and
perspective.
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