Echoing the views of China on the issue, expelled congressman Kiko Barzaga revives claims that the West Philippine Sea does not exist and lacks legal basis under international law. This is not true, based on official local documents and an almost 10-year-old international ruling.
The former Cavite representative published a graphic on his official Facebook page on June 20 carrying his “statement on the Philippine Coast Guard.” It stated:
“There is no such thing as a ‘West Philippine Sea’, lahat ng ibang bansa, South China Sea ang tawag diyan… (Every other country calls it the South China Sea)
Ginawa nang target practice ng water cannon ang Philippine Coast Guard, di pa rin sila natututo! (The Philippine Coast Guard has already been repeatedly targeted by water cannons, yet they still haven’t learned their lesson!)”
On June 22, Barzaga posted other claims on his two FB pages, which have combined followers of more than three million. He alleged that “there is no legal basis for the West Philippine Sea” internationally and reiterated that the rest of the world “recognizes it as the South China Sea.” One of the posts has already been taken down as of writing.
The late former president Benigno Aquino III, through Administrative Order No. 29 issued in September 2012, named the maritime areas on the country’s western side — including “the Luzon Sea as well as the waters around, within and adjacent to the Kalayaan Island Group and Bajo de Masinloc,...
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