Prayer forum for Spratlys seek peaceful resolution to dispute

“The Spratlys are worth dying for.”

This is Filipino-American lawyer Ted Laguatan’s unequivocal view on the controversy involving a group of more than 750 reefs, islets, atolls, and islands off the coast of the Philippines, Malaysia, and Vietnam.

Laguatan is the spokesperson of U.S. Pinoys for Good Governance, a group of concerned business and civic Filipino leaders in American founded after the inauguration of President Benigno S. Aquino III.

USP4GG is calling on all Filipinos across the globe to join their Prayer Forum for Peace in the Spratlys, a non-political, non-religious event that will be held at the Pedro P. Tenorio Multi-Purpose Center tomorrow, Aug. 21, from 1:30pm to 5pm.

Beneath Spratlys’ four square kilometers of land lies vast reserves of oil and gas deposits that are largely unexplored, prompting ownership disputes over portions of the islands among several countries, including China. The Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Brunei all claim portions of the disputed islands that fall within a 200-mile radius or the Exclusive Economic Zone by way of the 1982 United Nations Convention Law of the Sea.

But China, one of the signatories to the UNCLOS, claims rights on all of Spratlys, increasing hostility in the decades-long territorial disputes with its more aggressive approach.

“We cannot allow China with her bullying ways to just take this vast national wealth from us,” Laguatan told Saipan Tribune. “We would be betraying future generations of Filipinos whose lives will surely be better because of this wealth.”

The country’s position on the Spratly dispute was made clear when Aquino delivered his State of the Nation Address last month. “Now our message to the world is clear. What is ours is ours; setting foot on Recto Bank is no different from setting foot on Recto Avenue,” said the president, referring to the local name for Reed Bank, a group of small islands claimed both by the Philippines and China.

According to Laguatan, China’s claim on the Spratlys is “based on absurdity” since it is founded on an ancient map from the Han Dynasty dating back 2,000 years ago, while the Philippines’ claim is based on the UNCLOS.

Laguatan said that China’s intrusion into Philippine territory should be opposed in all ways possible, including armed means. “China’s use of force to take away our oil for free must be condemned in no uncertain terms and brought to the attention of the world. If they want our oil, they should pay fair prices for it—not steal it.”

While China is reckoned a formidable force in the global community, overtaking Japan as the second largest economy in the world, Laguatan maintained that the Philippines has a strong foothold in settling this dispute.

“China may be a Goliath but the global community is on our side because of the strength of our moral position. That other superpower, the United States, is also on our side. We are not exactly helpless,” added Laguatan.

He said the global prayer campaign is the idea of attorney Rodel Rodis, president of USP4GG. Rodel is in charge of organizing the forum globally and in the San Francisco Bay area. Loida Nicolas Lewis, meanwhile, handles the East Coast.

Celia Lamkin, president for the CNMI Chapter of USP4GG, said that tomorrow’s prayer forum will feature CNMI Delegate Gregorio “Kilili” Sablan, Senate President Paul A. Manglona, Pastor Ray Kinsella of Grace Christian Ministries, Pastor Manuelito Rey of Cornerstone Christian Church, and executive director John Oliver Gonzales of the Joeten-Kiyu Public Library.

A holy Mass at Kristo Rai Church will follow after the prayer forum. Various church services on Saipan, Tinian, and Rota will also be conducted in support of the prayer forum.

Lamkin, who is also the prayer forum overall coordinator for the CNMI, Guam, and Hawaii, said around 58 sites in 19 countries/states have registered for the prayer forum.