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MundoAsia,

Machismo isn’t quite what it used to be. Backlash and hashtags now hold politicians accountable for their so-called locker-room talk in much of the world. Yet the Philippines remains a glaring example of how men use language and law to try to emasculate opponents and maintain power.

At first glance, Filipinos do well in terms of gender equality. We beat the United States in having a female president by at least 30 years. Our nation has one of Asia’s highest percentages of women in government. Women on average receive more schooling, and their life expectancy leads men’s by almost seven years.…  Seguir leyendo »

MundoAméricaMundoAsia, , ,

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte is on a tear. In just the last two weeks, he has expressed a desire to separate his country from the United States, declared his intention to kick U.S. military personnel out of the Philippines, and appeared ready to drop territorial sovereignty claims in the South China Sea in return for investment guarantees from Beijing.

Duterte’s behavior might be considered brazen, boorish, even occasionally entertaining. But what’s worth noting is what it tells us about the state of alliance politics in the Indo-Asia-Pacific. As China has grown in economic, geopolitical and military power, its neighbors have reacted almost uniformly negatively.…  Seguir leyendo »

Duterte deal with China over Scarborough Shoal exposes US failure

MundoAméricaMundoAsia, , , ,

Controversial Philippines president Rodrigo Duterte appears to have secured a major concession from Beijing in the South China Sea.

It happened quietly last week when China suddenly lifted its four-year blockade of the Scarborough Shoal, allowing Filipino fishermen to freely access the shoal's plentiful waters.

If it lasts, this will be chalked up as a victory for Duterte's pivot to China and a geopolitical setback for the United States.
By cozying up to China and trash-talking America, Duterte has achieved something that Washington couldn't deliver: a peaceful resolution to the Scarborough Shoal standoff.

The significance of this can't be overstated.

Back in 2012, China seized the Scarborough Shoal by deploying powerful coastguard cutters to evict the Philippine navy.…  Seguir leyendo »

MundoAsia

Within a span of a few months, the Philippines has transformed from one of China's most ardent critics into one of its potential allies.

"I'm going to China to make friends with them and also with Russia", Rodrigo Duterte, the Philippines' firebrand leader, claimed recently.

"I am ready to not really break ties [with America] but we will open alliances with China and . . . Medvedev [Russia]".

Since his first day in office, Duterte has consistently touted his commitment to forging a more independent foreign policy, which, to him, means less dependence on America.

Naturally, many are beginning to ask whether Duterte, a self-described 'socialist', will revamp the Philippines' foreign policy by shifting alliances towards China.…  Seguir leyendo »

MundoAsia, , ,

Hace tres meses, la Corte Permanente de Arbitraje de La Haya dictaminó que no había ningún sustento legal para que China reclamara derechos históricos sobre los recursos del Mar Occidental de Filipinas (también conocido como Mar de la China Meridional) y, en consecuencia, que las Filipinas tienen derechos exclusivos sobre el territorio. China rechazó la sentencia, y un frío glacial empañó la relación bilateral alguna vez amistosa. Es hora de recuperar cierta cordialidad.

Poco después del dictamen, el presidente filipino, Rodrigo Duterte, inesperadamente me designó, a los 88 años, como enviado especial de mi país a China, con ese simple objetivo.…  Seguir leyendo »

MundoAsia, , ,

El mar del Sur de China es el Mediterráneo del este de Asia. Por sus aguas transita el 70% del comercio -incluidos productos energéticos, como gas y petróleo- de la zona, lo que representa un tercio del comercio mundial, y como vía de conexión entre el Índico y el Pacífico tiene valor estratégico fundamental. El 12 de julio, la Corte Permanente de Arbitraje (CPA) asestó un duro golpe en las pretensiones chinas de controlar buena parte de esas aguas. Pekín, que reivindica el 80% de los 3,5 millones de kilómetros cuadrados de esa superficie, baraja cómo encajar la bofetada jurídica.El panel de cinco expertos en Derecho Internacional Marítimo de este desconocido organismo -fundado en 1899, dormido entre 1946 y 1990 y con 121 países miembros-- falló por unanimidad a favor de 14 de las 15 demandas interpuestas por Filipinas contra los «derechos históricos» chinos.…  Seguir leyendo »

MundoAsia

“Clearly, he’s a colorful guy”, said President Barrack Obama of his opposite number in the Philippines, Rodrigo Duterte. Obama expressed his observation in a mildly amused way, the way one does when one is largely in control in a world that contains exotic characters with whom one has to deal – even if that character has just called one “the son of a whore”. Open indignation would have flattered the guy, though he didn’t get a meeting. The better putdown is to say, as Obama did, that a future meeting might be arranged if some real business could be done. Earthy insults are relegated to a lower category, which excites the news media, and are swatted away by a serious leader.…  Seguir leyendo »

A Hero’s Burial for a Long-Dead Dictator

MundoAsia

Mornings in the Philippines reveal bodies dumped outside slums. Averaging 13 a day, nearly 2,000 in the last two months, the bodies are hung with cardboard labels: purse snatcher, drug pusher, addict. The authorities decline to investigate. These are the casualties of a controversial crusade against crime that was the subject of the recent spat between the country’s new president, Rodrigo Duterte, and Barack Obama, which devolved into crude insults (by Mr. Duterte) and canceled meetings (by Mr. Obama).

These corpses aren’t the only ones in the spotlight. Mr. Duterte, making good on a campaign promise, has ordered the mummified body of our former dictator, Ferdinand E.…  Seguir leyendo »

MundoAméricaMundoAsia, ,

(Note: paragraph 4 contains language that may offend some readers)

If you’re a historic U.S. ally under mounting pressure from an emerging superpower like China, it’s probably not a good idea to use a crude sexual epithet to describe the American president. Filipino leader Rodrigo Duterte, though, is far from a normal president. And his behavior – and that of his government – is increasingly posing a serious challenge to Washington on an ever-growing variety of levels.

Washington’s relations with the Philippines have always been complex. The Philippines were one of the very few U.S. colonies overseas before they were granted independence in 1946, although the United States retained several sovereign bases.…  Seguir leyendo »

MundoAsia

Imagine a presidential election campaign in which a bombastic candidate campaigns by insulting people, and by making promises and threats that sound so outlandish that people think, surely, he must be exaggerating.

Now imagine that candidate wins.

Welcome to the Philippines, where Rodrigo Duterte, also known as "The Punisher" assumed the presidency on June 30. The experience should prove informative for people considering the election of another "tell-it-like-it-is" politician, America's very own Donald J. Trump.

Duterte just caused an international incident when he called the US ambassador a "gay son of a bitch", during a recent speech to a military group.…  Seguir leyendo »

Will the Philippines Finally Legalize Divorce?

MundoAsia,

This is the Philippines, not Vatican City. And yet here we are, in 2016, the only country in the world other than the Holy See that still outlaws divorce.

Although our Constitution formally guarantees the separation of church and state, the Catholic establishment here wields considerable influence in politics, commenting on specific policies or helping select candidates for office. The Church has long opposed what it calls the “D.E.A.T.H”. bills — laws proposing to allow divorce, euthanasia, abortion, total population control and homosexual marriage — calling them “anti-family and anti-life”.

It wasn’t until 2012 that the Reproductive Health Law, which eases access to condoms and birth-control pills, was passed.…  Seguir leyendo »

MundoAsia, , ,

Tuesday’s ruling by the International Tribunal on the Law of the Sea has bought a little clarity to the problems in the South China Sea, but it has not made solving the underlying problems significantly simpler.

In a bad day for China, the Tribunal ruled that Beijing’s ‘nine-dash line’ (its claim to between 60% and 90% of the waters of the South China Sea) had no legal basis because China’s claims of ‘historic rights’ to the waters of the Sea had been rendered invalid when it signed the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. The judgement went on to say that none of the Spratlys, a chain of reefs and rocks at the southern end of the South China Sea where China has recently built seven installations, were 'islands' and therefore did not generate any territorial or economic rights regardless of who occupied them.…  Seguir leyendo »

MundoAsia, , ,

El tribunal arbitral presidido por el juez Thomas A. Mensah ha decidido sobre la demanda presentada por Filipinas contra China en relación con las actividades de ésta en el mar de China meridional. La reclamación filipina tiene su origen en los incidentes del arrecife de las Scarborough en 2012, cuando buques chinos expulsaron a los pescadores filipinos que allí faenaban. Pero los conflictos en el mar de China meridional no son nuevos. Son múltiples los problemas territoriales que enfrentan a China con la práctica totalidad de esos países, fundamentalmente Vietnam, Malasia, Filipinas y Brunei, en las islas Spratly, y Taiwán y Vietnam, en las Paracel.…  Seguir leyendo »

MundoÁfrica, , ,

China has taken a leap towards clarifying its claims in the South China Sea, but in a direction that could intensify frictions.

The International Tribunal on the Law of the Sea delivered a sweeping ruling Tuesday against China in an arbitration case initiated by the Philippines. The result significantly limits the size of the maritime zones and scope of maritime rights that China can legally claim. Minutes later, the Chinese government issued a statement. In it, China stakes claims to sovereignty over all land features in the South China Sea, as well as entitlement to internal waters, territorial sea, contiguous zone, the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) and continental shelf based on these islands, as well as historic rights in unspecified waters.…  Seguir leyendo »

MundoAsia, , ,

The ruling by an arbitral tribunal of five members based in The Hague was simple and devastating. It declares that ‘China’s claims to historic rights… with respect to the maritime areas of the South China Sea encompassed by the relevant part of the “nine-dash line” are contrary to the [The UN] Convention [on the Law of the Sea, UNCLOS]’. This is a result that Southeast Asia’s maritime countries have long sought. The way is now clear to resolve all the disputes in the region, if the participants choose to do so.

For decades, countries around the South China Sea lived under the shadow of a quasi-territorial claim that no one really understood.…  Seguir leyendo »

MundoAsia,

The southern Philippines is potentially closer to peace than at any time in the four decades since Muslim insurgents started fighting for independence, but the substantial progress over the past six years is also fragile. The new President, Rodrigo Duterte, needs to build quickly on the foundations laid by the last administration or the process risks collapse.

President Duterte is a supporter of a peace deal in the south. On the campaign trail he spoke about the 'historical injustice' done to the Muslims, and declared 'nothing will appease the Moro people' except autonomy. But he has also said that he does not intend to pick up where his predecessor, President Benigno Aquino, left off.…  Seguir leyendo »

MundoAsia, , ,

La sentencia de la Corte Permanente de Arbitraje (CPA) de La Haya en contra de los reclamos territoriales de China en el Mar de China Meridional será recibida con alivio en las capitales de la región. Pero es poco probable que revierta una de las tendencias más preocupantes en Asia: un alarmante acopio de armas en la región.

Según el Instituto Internacional de Estudios para la Paz de Estocolmo, Asia hoy responde por casi la mitad del gasto mundial en armamentos -más del doble que el gasto total de los países de Oriente Medio y cuatro veces más que el de Europa.…  Seguir leyendo »

MundoAsia, , ,

La comunidad internacional ha sido informada del “fallo final” sobre el polémico “arbitraje sobre el mar Meridional de China”. Dado que este arbitraje viola el derecho internacional tanto en contenido como en procedimiento, el fallo carece de toda validez jurídica. China rechaza cualquier coacción que se ejerza para obligarle a aceptar el arbitraje. El asunto referido en el arbitraje es en esencia la disputa entre China y Filipinas por la soberanía sobre las islas del mar Meridional de China.De cara a esta disputa, los importantes hechos fundamentales no pueden ser ignorados:

En primer lugar, antes de la década de los 70 del siglo pasado, la comunidad internacional no tenía ninguna objeción al hecho de que China poseía la soberanía sobre las islas del mar Meridional de China.…  Seguir leyendo »

MundoAsia, , ,

La Convención de Naciones Unidas sobre el Derecho del Mar de 1982, que ha sido calificada como la constitución del Derecho del Mar, prevé en su Anexo VII un sistema de solución de diferencias que ha utilizado la República de Filipinas para llevar a la República Popular de China ante un tribunal arbitral ad hoc integrado por cinco prestigiosos juristas.

La reacción de China frente a la solicitud de establecimiento de un tribunal arbitral ha sido siempre de rechazo absoluto. Desde un principio, las autoridades chinas comunicaron que no aceptarían ni participarían en el arbitraje unilateralmente iniciado por Filipinas, ni siquiera con el fin de objetar la competencia del tribunal arbitral para decidir el caso.…  Seguir leyendo »

MundoAsia, , ,

L’été s’annonce orageux en mer de Chine méridionale. Cet espace hautement stratégique, par lequel transite près de la moitié du trafic maritime mondial, est âprement disputé depuis quelques années. Pas moins de six États - Chine, Vietnam, Malaisie, Brunei, Philippines, Taïwan - revendiquent des droits souverains sur son sol, sous-sol et ses eaux surjacentes. Leurs prétentions sont principalement fondées sur la Convention des Nations Unies sur le droit de la mer de 1982 (CNUDM), aujourd’hui ratifiée par 167 États, dont ceux en litige, sauf Taïwan. La Chine considère toutefois que des titres historiques séculaires lui permettraient d’étendre ses droits bien au-delà des 200 milles marins (370,4 km) prévus par la convention.…  Seguir leyendo »