PH to file case vs China for ‘destruction of environment’ 

THE Philippine government will pursue the filing of environmental cases against China for its numerous destructive activities in the West Philippine Sea for many years.

Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said in an interview on Wednesday that they will be consulting with “the best legal experts” before the government formally lodges the complaint before an international tribunal

Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla. PHOTO By MIKE ALQUINTO

Remulla stressed that with or without the Philippines' territorial dispute with China over parts of the West Philippine Sea, they will still file the case on behalf of the Philippines and for the sake of mankind “since the destruction of the environment is a sin against humanity.”

He said they will discuss the filing of the environmental case against China with Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin “at the earliest opportunity.”

“We will pursue these cases against China since we already have a lot of evidence,” Remulla said. He did not specify what this evidence is.

Remulla pointed out that the Philippine government has been gathering evidence against China's destructive activities in the West Philippine Sea for many years.

He said the documentation only gained momentum in the last few months.

Remulla made the announcement just days after the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) confirmed the report recently released by the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Western Command (Wescom) about the severe damage inflicted upon the marine environment and coral reef in the seabed of Rozul Reef and Escoda Shoal, areas which are part of the Philippines' exclusive economic zone (EEZ).

These were the same areas where approximately 33 Chinese maritime vessels were monitored from August 9 to September 11.

During the same period the PCG launched missions to conduct extensive underwater surveys of the seabed in both Rozul Reef and Escoda Shoal.

The results of these surveys showed that the marine ecosystem in the subject WPS features appeared lifeless, with minimal to no signs of life.