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Thursday, March 28, 2024

PH bids for seat in UNSC

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President pleads for support, cites government successes in forging peace

President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. asked the member-states of the United Nations (UN) to support the Philippines’ bid to become a member of the Security Council for the term 2027-2028.

FIRST IN OVER A DECADE. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. addresses the 77th session of the United Nations General Assembly at UN headquarters in New York City on September 20, 2022. He is the first Philippine president to address the UN in person since the remarks of the late President Benigno Aquino III in 2010.

In a speech at the 77th session of the United Nations General Assembly, Mr. Marcos also emphasized the importance of adhering to rules-based international order to settle disputes and warned that the peace and stability in Asia is under threat due to ideological tensions.

“My country’s experience in building peace and forging new paths of cooperation can enrich the work of the Security Council,” said Mr. Marcos, who cited the peace forged with Muslim separatists in Mindanao. “And to this end, I appeal for the valuable support of all UN member states for the Philippines’ candidature to the Security Council for the term of 2027-2028.”

“The peace that we have forged after many decades of conflict among warring factions and clansmen demonstrates that unity is possible even in the most trying circumstances,” the President said.

A credible and solid foundation for self-government in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), Marcos said, was a result of inclusive dialogue involving all stakeholders, including women, youth, faith leaders, and civil society.

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The Philippines takes the same approach in Asia, he said, noting that the Philippines builds partnerships for peace and development through dialogue, including through interfaith and inter-religious dialogue, especially through the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

“In the face of great diversity, we believe that partnerships form the bridge to unite all of us in promoting peace and stability in the Asia Pacific region,” Marcos added.

The President raised the need to create a reformed and more inclusive Security Council and an empowered General Assembly that can hold the council to account.

He also cited the importance of equipping nations, especially developing countries, with the tools needed to “navigate the uncharted waters of this century.”

In January 2004, the Philippines assumed one of the elected seats in the UN Security Council for the term 2004-2005.

The body has 15 members and each member has one vote. The council’s five permanent members with veto powers are China, France, the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

Settling disputes peacefully

Turning his attention to the tensions in the South China Sea, Marcos said disputes must be resolved “through peaceful means” and “through reason and through right.”

He said the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and the Manila Declaration on the Peaceful Settlement of International Disputes provide “useful guidance for our time.”

“For amidst the challenging global tides, an important ballast stabilizes our common vessel. That is, our open, inclusive, and rules-based international order that is governed by international law and informed by the principles of equity and of justice,” Marcos said.

“Our people chose survival. They chose cooperation. They chose peace. And by doing so, they made history. Today, history once again calls to us to make these choices,” he added.

The UNCLOS, adopted in 1982, lays down a comprehensive legal framework governing all activities and uses of the world’s seas and oceans. It also establishes general obligations for safeguarding the marine environment and protecting freedom of scientific research on the high seas.

On the other hand, the Manila Declaration on the Peaceful Settlement of International Disputes is a landmark instrument adopted by the UNGA in 1982 to promote the peaceful settlement of international disputes.

The Philippines, China and several other littoral states are locked in a territorial dispute over the resource-rich South China Sea (SCS) where Beijing claims around 80 percent of the strategic waters.

The Philippines on July 12, 2016 won its petition filed before the Hague-based Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) after the arbitral tribunal invalidated Beijing’s claim of supposed historic rights over almost the entire SCS.

China, however, has repeatedly ignored the PCA ruling.

‘Friend to all, enemy of none’

Marcos, in his keynote address, renewed his resolve to pursue an independent foreign policy that makes the Philippines a “friend to all and an enemy of none.”

“As I have underscored, the Philippines shall continue to be a friend to all, and an enemy of none,” he said.

In his first State of the Nation Address delivered on July 25, Marcos said the Philippines will continue to be a “good neighbor” that is seeking collaboration and cooperation to yield “mutually beneficial outcomes.”

Marcos said unity will contribute to the success of all nations.

“The future beckons and we can embark upon that journey as single nations or as a world in harmony. I say let the challenges of one people be the challenges for all nations. And in that way the success of one will be a success for us all,” he told the UN member-states.

“The peoples of the world look to their leaders, to us, to make into reality these aspirations for our future. We must not fail them. And if we stand together, we will not fail them. If we stand together, we can only succeed. Let us dream, let us work for those successes for all our nations, united,” Marcos said.

But peace and stability in Asia is under threat due to ideological tensions, he said.

Widening geopolitical polarities and sharpening strategic competitions have transformed the international political landscape, he added.

“A profound lack of trust is putting enormous strains on our multilateral system. Our very Charter is being violated around the world as we speak. In Asia, our hard-won peace and stability is under threat by increasing strategic and ideological tensions,” he said without mentioning any country.

“These behoove us to uphold the ideals that led to the establishment of this parliament of nations, and to reject any attempt to deny or redefine our common understanding of these principles,” he said.

“I stand today on behalf of 110 million Filipinos. At this time of crisis and opportunity, I bring with me the spirit of their enduring commitment to the ideals of our United Nations,” Marcos said.

“This commitment is reflected in our solid contributions to the cause of peace and of justice, ” he added.

The chief executive cited the Philippines’ role in shepherding the Manila Declaration of 1982 noting that it helped affirm that differences should only be resolved through peaceful means.

He also stressed the country’s contribution to reinforcing the predictability and stability of international law, particularly the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, wherein the Philippines provided an example of how states should resolve disputes, which is through reason and right.

Marcos is the first Philippine president to attend the UNGA in person since the COVID-19 pandemic hit in 2020. He was also the first leader from the ASEAN to deliver a statement during the High-Level General Debate, which was attended by more than 150 heads of state and government.

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