The Whitsun Reef Incident and the Law of the Sea
Aerial view of the Whitsun Reef in the South China Sea. (NASA)
In March the Philippines formally protested the presence of about 200 Chinese boats moored near its claimed Whitsun Reef in the South China Sea. Philippines Secretary of Defense Delfin Lorenzana publicly called “on the Chinese to stop this incursion and immediately recall these boats violating our maritime rights and encroaching into our sovereign territory.” An international chorus of concern and clarion calls for action soon followed, with leadinganalystsjoiningin. China said the vessels were fishing boats sheltering from the weather, that China had traditionally fished around the reef, and that their presence was “normal and legitimate[.]” Critics alleged nevertheless that the vessels were crewed by maritime militia and that the boats’ intention was to demonstrate China’s illegal historical claim to the waters.