Duterte accepts China’s proposed joint probe on Recto Back incident — Palace

FILE: President Rodrigo Roa Duterte delivers his speech following the oath-taking ceremony of his son, Vice Mayor Sebastian Duterte, at the Sangguniang Panlungsod in Davao City on June 21, 2019. JOEY DALUMPINES/PRESIDENTIAL PHOTO

Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo on Saturday, June 22, said the country’s Chief Executive has accepted China’s proposal to conduct a joint investigation with the Philippines on the Recto Bank incident.

In a statement, the Palace official said, “President Rodrigo Roa Duterte welcomes and accepts the offer of the Chinese Government to conduct a joint investigation to determine what really transpired in Recto Bank and find a satisfactory closure to this episode.”

Duterte, he said, wants to create a joint investigating committee that will investigate the incident which will be composed of “three groups of highly qualified and competent individuals, with the Philippines and China having one representative each, and a third member coming from a neutral country.”

China earlier suggested to have a joint investigation so that the two countries could “exchange respective initial finding and properly handle the matter through friendly consultations based on mutually-recognized investigation results.”

Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin, Jr., however, rejected this on Friday, saying the Philippines and China will conduct their “respective investigations” into the matter.

But separate investigations by the two parties could raise speculation and accusation of bias, according to Duterte’s mouthpiece.

“A joint and impartial investigation will not only promote the expedient resolution of the issue, it will also be in accordance with international law, including the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), which places paramount emphasis on the use of peaceful means to resolve international disputes,” Panelo said.

He also stressed that the Philippine government won’t relinquish “any inch” of its sovereign rights nor compromise the rights of the 22 Filipino fishermen who were abandoned at sea when their boat, F/B Gem-Ver, sank after it was allegedly hit by a Chinese vessel at the Recto Bank in the West Philippine Sea last June 9.

“We are demanding justice for our countrymen, and we are using all legal means toward that end,” the spokesman said.

Hours before his trip to Bangkok, Thailand, Duterte said on Friday that he would “talk lengthily” about China’s claims over the South China Sea with other state leaders when he meets them at the 34th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit.