MANILA — Former Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario on Wednesday slammed the Chinese Coast Guard for its ‘close distance maneuvering’ against a Philippine Coast Guard vessel at Bajo de Masinloc earlier this month, maintaining that the Philippines has sovereignty over the area.

"We condemn the malicious and reckless action of the Chinese Coast Guard in endangering the lives of the Filipinos aboard BRP Malabrigo," del Rosario said in a statement.

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The country's former top diplomat said Bajo de Masinloc, also known as Scarborough Shoal, is well within the Philippines’ 200-nautical mile Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).

Because of this, the Philippines has “exclusive sovereign rights” over the area, something which has been affirmed by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague, Netherlands in 2016, he said.

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“Bajo de Masinloc is a territory of the Philippines. It is under the sovereignty of the Philippines, not China. Therefore, the presence and conduct of patrol by the Chinese Coast Guard in Bajo de Masinloc is illegal and affects the peace in the West Philippine Sea and the South China Sea,” Del Rosario said.

He described the close encounter of the Chinese Coast Guard with the Philippines’ BRP Malabrigo as in “violation of existing international law and agreements.”

“It is clear that the dangerous maneuver by the Chinese Coast Guard was not merely incidental, accidental or by chance. It was deliberate. It was malicious… Similar actions of the Chinese Coast Guard in the past had been the subject of the Philippine Arbitration against China adjudged in 2016 as violative of international law,” he said.

Del Rosario underscored the proximity of Bajo de Masinloc to the Philippines, saying it is situated around 124 to 126 nautical miles off Zambales. In contrast, it is some 400 nautical miles away from the Chinese island of Hainan.

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He also maintained that there is sufficient documentation of the Philippines’ sovereignty over Bajo de Masinloc.

After the American colonial period, he said, the Philippines succeeded the United States in exercising sovereignty over the rock.

“The Philippines exercised effective jurisdiction over Bajo de Masinloc peacefully over a long period of time without interference from any other country,” he said.

Del Rosario was the Foreign Secretary during the administration of the late President Benigno Aquino III.

The Philippine Coast Guard reported the latest incident at Bajo de Masinloc last Sunday.

The government has since lodged a diplomatic protest against China over the incident, according to National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon, Jr.

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China's expansive claim over the South China Sea has been invalidated by the 2016 arbitral award. It continues to disregard the ruling.

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