PHILIPPINES A STATE NO MORE?

By Bayawanon

The so-called INDEPENDENT FOREIGN POLICY of the president is very self-explanatory, when you say that the foreign policy of a certain country is an independent one, it would follow that no foreign country is dictating the foreign policy of the former and that all countries are equal before its eyes.

But it seems that the foreign policy of the Philippines is not an independent one, for the same is distancing from its former allies like the European Union, the United States of America, and the United Nations and by getting closer to the geopolitical rivals of its former allies like Russia and China.

In connection to this, we can simply conclude that the foreign policy of the Philippines by way of its president is not independent after all for it leans towards China and Russia. Some instances would also tell us that China has control over the Philippines in diplomatic matters. The Philippines has abandoned the decision of the International Tribunal of the Law of the Seas in its favor and as against China in the matter of the ownership of the Spratlys and of the South China Sea.

By way of the Philippine loans and grants from China, the Chinese government gains control over the Philippines diplomatically and geopolitically. This happening does not just imperil the independent foreign policy of the Philippines for it also threatens the statehood of the same.

A STATE is defined as a group of people more or less numerous, occupying a definite portion of territory, independent from internal and external control, and has a government to which every individual renders habitual obedience. In sum, a state is composed of four components namely: 1) People 2) Territory 3) Sovereignty, and 4) Government.

Technically, if one of the four components of statehood is absent in a certain country, then it ceases to be a state. Practically, the three components of statehood of the Philippines, especially the government, territory, and people are still there, even the internal sovereignty of the same is still there, but its external sovereignty is already absent because of the external control of colossal China.

Through the lack of the Philippines of EXTERNAL SOVEREIGNTY, since China is externally controlling the former, the Philippines in an international law legal point of view technically ceases to exist as a state.