2016年CRI Expert: China-proposed solution legally founded

 

Professor Li Juqian with China University of Political Science and Law is confident that the solution to the issue proposed by China has firm legal grounds.

"As early as in 2006, Beijing declared - in line with UNCLOS - to exclude disputes concerning maritime¹ delimitation from mandatory² dispute settlement procedures. We have insisted on resolving disputes through bilateral³ talks, which conform with both UNCLOS and international law."

The case started on Jan. 22, 2013, with the Philippines submission⁴ of a Notification and Statement of Claim to the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) to initiate⁵ compulsory⁶ arbitration⁷ proceedings⁸.

A five-member arbitral tribunal was then created, with the Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague as its office of registry.

The tribunal announced on Oct. 29, 2015, that it has jurisdiction⁹ to consider seven of the Philippines' submissions¹⁰ while reserving consideration of its jurisdiction to rule on the other submissions to the merits phase.

But Professor Li argues about its jurisdiction.

"In claiming jurisdiction over the case, the tribunal is acting¹¹ beyond its powers and beyond the authorization¹² of UNCLOS. According to International Law, any concerned party enjoys the right to seek dispute settlements of its own choosing, based on not only the convention, but also common practices and the general principles of law. And in addition, the South China Sea case is in essence about territorial¹³ sovereignty and maritime delimitation. Territorial issues are not subject to UNCLOS."

China has insisted the court has no say in the South China Sea dispute.

It also blamed the tribunal for heightening tensions between China and the Philippines, affecting the stability of regional and international maritime order, and contradicting its purpose of peaceful settlement of international disputes.

Since 1995, China and the Philippines have reached a series of bilateral agreements and signed the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC). All of the documents stipulate¹⁴ the two sides resolve any dispute between themselves through bilateral negotiations¹⁶.

Professor Li suggests direct talks between Beijing and Manila are still the best option on the table.

"To resolve a dispute, there are different ways. But bilateral negotiation¹⁵ is the best way that would bring the least aftermath. For example, though the lengthy¹⁷ dispute between Thailand and Cambodia over the ownership of Preah Vihear Temple ended in the 1960s with an International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruling in favor of Cambodia, Thailand has come up with new problems with the case recently. So an arbitration only works if both sides accept it. Otherwise, new problems will come."

With regard to the South China Sea case that was unilaterally initiated¹⁸ by the Philippines, Li says, without China's acceptance, the upcoming ruling will do nothing to help solve the problem.

For CRI, this is Liu Mohan.

1 maritime   

adj.海的，海事的，航海的，近海的，沿海的

参考例句：

• Many maritime people are fishermen.许多居于海滨的人是渔夫。
• The temperature change in winter is less in maritime areas.冬季沿海的温差较小。

2 mandatory   

adj.命令的；强制的；义务的；n.受托者

参考例句：

• It's mandatory to pay taxes.缴税是义务性的。
• There is no mandatory paid annual leave in the U.S.美国没有强制带薪年假。

3 bilateral   

adj.双方的，两边的，两侧的

参考例句：

• They have been negotiating a bilateral trade deal.他们一直在商谈一项双边贸易协定。
• There was a wide gap between the views of the two statesmen on the bilateral cooperation.对双方合作的问题，两位政治家各自所持的看法差距甚大。

4 submission   

n.服从，投降；温顺，谦虚；提出

参考例句：

• The defeated general showed his submission by giving up his sword.战败将军缴剑表示投降。
• No enemy can frighten us into submission.任何敌人的恐吓都不能使我们屈服。

5 initiate   

vt.开始，创始，发动；启蒙，使入门；引入

参考例句：

• A language teacher should initiate pupils into the elements of grammar.语言老师应该把基本语法教给学生。
• They wanted to initiate a discussion on economics.他们想启动一次经济学讨论。

6 compulsory   

n.强制的，必修的；规定的，义务的

参考例句：

• Is English a compulsory subject?英语是必修课吗？
• Compulsory schooling ends at sixteen.义务教育至16岁为止。

7 arbitration   

n.调停，仲裁

参考例句：

• The wage disagreement is under arbitration.工资纠纷正在仲裁中。
• Both sides have agreed that the arbitration will be binding.双方都赞同仲裁具有约束力。

8 proceedings   

n.进程，过程，议程；诉讼(程序)；公报

参考例句：

• He was released on bail pending committal proceedings. 他交保获释正在候审。
• to initiate legal proceedings against sb 对某人提起诉讼

9 jurisdiction   

n.司法权，审判权，管辖权，控制权

参考例句：

• It doesn't lie within my jurisdiction to set you free.我无权将你释放。
• Changzhou is under the jurisdiction of Jiangsu Province.常州隶属江苏省。

10 submissions   

n.提交( submission的名词复数 )；屈从；归顺；向法官或陪审团提出的意见或论据

参考例句：

• The deadline for submissions to the competition will be Easter 1994. 递交参赛申请的截止时间为1994年的复活节。 来自辞典例句
• Section 556(d) allows the agency to substitute written submissions for oral direct testimony in rulemaking. 第五百五十六条第（四）款准允行政机关在规则制定中用书面提交材料替代口头的直接证言。 来自英汉非文学 - 行政法

11 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

12 authorization   

n.授权，委任状

参考例句：

• Anglers are required to obtain prior authorization from the park keeper.垂钓者必须事先得到公园管理者的许可。
• You cannot take a day off without authorization.未经批准你不得休假。

13 territorial   

adj.领土的，领地的

参考例句：

• The country is fighting to preserve its territorial integrity.该国在为保持领土的完整而进行斗争。
• They were not allowed to fish in our territorial waters.不允许他们在我国领海捕鱼。

14 stipulate   

vt.规定，（作为条件）讲定，保证

参考例句：

• International rules stipulate the number of foreign entrants.国际规则规定了外国参赛者的人数。
• Some manufacturers stipulate the price at which their goods are to be sold.有些制造商规定出售他们生产的商品的价格。

15 negotiation   

n.谈判，协商

参考例句：

• They closed the deal in sugar after a week of negotiation.经过一星期的谈判，他们的食糖生意成交了。
• The negotiation dragged on until July.谈判一直拖到7月份。

16 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

17 lengthy   

adj.漫长的，冗长的

参考例句：

• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。
• The professor wrote a lengthy book on Napoleon.教授写了一部有关拿破仑的巨著。

18 initiated   

n. 创始人 adj. 新加入的 vt. 开始，创始，启蒙，介绍加入

参考例句：

• He has not yet been thoroughly initiated into the mysteries of computers. 他对计算机的奥秘尚未入门。
• The artist initiated the girl into the art world in France. 这个艺术家介绍这个女孩加入巴黎艺术界。