Required reading: Some background on Code of Conduct in the South China Sea

CHEERS TO the news organizations that provided background information on the Code of Conduct (COC) in the South China Sea as President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. renewed the call for it.

At the 46^th ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia held from May 26 to 27, Marcos delivered his plenary statement on the 26th, saying, “We underscore the urgent need to accelerate the adoption of a legally binding Code of Conduct (COC) in the South China Sea to safeguard maritime rights, promote stability, and prevent miscalculations at sea.”

News coverage picked up the quote on May 27 with front page headlines on the Philippine Daily Inquirer, The Philippine Star, The Manila Times, and Manila Standard. News accounts said Marcos issued the statement after the Chinese vessels harassed two Philippine research vessels with water cannons; but not all reports noted the importance of the code and its history. 

Context and history 

Reports on BusinessWorld, GMA News Online, Philstar.com and The Philippine Star noted that the negotiations for a COC have been stalled for years because of the lack of agreement involving legal and political points between ASEAN members and China. 

With the exception of GMA News Online, the reports above recalled that the Declaration of Conduct, a non-binding agreement, was signed in 2002.

GMA News Online however noted that ASEAN and China agreed on a single negotiating draft in August 2018. Both parties agreed to finalize the document within three years, but have failed to do so.

BusinessWorld reported more reasons for the delay of the code, citing experts to provide more background information; among them, Josue Raphael Cortez, an ASEAN Studies lecturer at the De La Salle-College of St. Benilde.

The article cited Cortez who recalled that China expressed concerns as early as the 1970s when the drafting of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) started – that the discussions were “veering more towards the benefit of developed and powerful countries.” 

Cortez added that after the Permanent Court of Arbitration upheld UNCLOS in the case of the Philippines against China, China continued to occupy areas in the territory, even building permanent structures in direct challenge of Philippine sovereign rights.  

Cortez also discussed the competing claims of other ASEAN members on what used to be known as the South China Sea. Their strong economic ties with China are factors that hinder the creation of a formal COC. Cortez added that Indonesia’s claim has never become a “subject of discussion between the two countries.”

Cortez said Marcos’ call for a legally binding COC “sends a powerful message,” and might indicate that the code would be a top agenda when the Philippines chairs the ASEAN next year. 

More specifically, the COC could provide a concrete instrument that could diminish, or even stop completely, the harassment of Philippine vessels and personnel on Philippine waters. 

However, the inclusion of the COC in the forthcoming agenda of the 2026 ASEAN meeting calls for coordinated preparatory actions on the part of government and its relevant agencies. 

Reporters should be ready to check how government undertakes this initial phase of the work, including the president’s own preparation to discuss this matter on the ASEAN stage. Coverage should identify the difficulties involved in its pursuit. 

Filipinos should see the drafting of the COC as a concrete step towards ending foreign aggression in Philippine waters, ensuring our protection and upholding our freedom to sail our own seas.