Pearls and Irritations

The Philippines enacted two enabling legislation on 8 November 2024. Known as Republic Act (RA) 12064 or the Philippine Maritime Zones Act; and Republic Act (RA) 12065 or the Philippine Archipelagic Sea Lanes Act, the legislation has attracted a fair number of criticisms from the region among those not familiar with the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

The legislation is necessary for the delineation of the archipelagic sea lanes as well as demarcating the limits of its maritime zones.

Indonesia, Fiji and the Philippines are among those island states credited for bringing the concept of archipelagic states into legal reality. Indeed, Indonesia proclaimed its archipelagic sea lanes, and these are recognised by the international community.

The new laws of the Philippines should come as no surprise to the international maritime community. Indeed, they are long overdue for a nation that ratified UNCLOS on 8 May 1984 which came into force for the Philippines in 1994, two years before Malaysia’s ratification.

However, the Philippines’ ratification of UNCLOS was accompanied by a reservation on the application of the rules on archipelagic sea lanes passage. The reservation equating the archipelagic waters “is similar to the concept of internal waters under the Constitution of the Philippines and removes straits connecting these waters with the economic zone or high sea from the rights of foreign vessels to transit passage for international navigation” and had provoked protests from the US, Russia, and Australia.

The Philippine Archipelagic Sea Lanes Act complements the Philippine Maritime Zones Act in ensuring the protection of the country’s sovereignty and maritime domain by designating the routes and areas through which foreign military vessels and foreign registered aircraft can pass.

The recent laws have the effect of reversing its earlier reservation by allowing all foreign vessels and aircraft to exercise the right of navigation and overflight through three designated routes (referred as Axis Lines) within the archipelagic waters.

The alignments of the three proposed archipelagic sea lanes (ASLs) – as shown in purple – should not pose any problems for Malaysian registered/flagged ships operating in the region as freedom of navigation is assured (guaranteed). Likewise, the same applies to Brunei, China (PRC), Indonesia and other flag states.

These routes are marked, in purple, on the attached map.

Sea Lane 1 relates to the Philippine Sea-Balintang Channel-West Philippine Sea,

Sea Lane 2 applies to the Celebes Sea-Sibutu Passage-Sulu Sea-Cuyo East Pass-Mindoro Strait-West Philippine Sea, and

Sea Lane 3 is the Celebes Sea-Basilan Strait-Sulu Sea-Nasubata Channel-Balabac Strait-West Philippine Sea connection.

The notification and publication of the alignment of the routes of the sea lanes must be endorsed by the International Maritime Organisation (IMO). The Philippines has one year to consult with the IMO and the International Civil Aviation Organisation and supply them the specific geographical coordinates for the selected sea-lanes before they are adopted.

RA 12064 upholds Philippine sovereignty and jurisdiction over its internal waters, the Territorial Sea and Contiguous Zone archipelagic waters and the airspace above it, as well as its seabed and substratum. Such an act is considered customary international practice.

The new laws demonstrate the nation’s resolve to protect its marine environment and resources, preserve the rich biodiversity, and ensure that the seas that encompass the archipelago remain a source of life and livelihood for the people of the Philippines.

RA 12065 also identifies the liability of ships or aircraft for any loss or damage suffered by the Philippines or any third party because of non-compliance with the provisions of the law. The archipelagic sea lanes will offer continuous, expeditious, and unrestricted and obstructed transit for ships and air transport while obliging them to comply with navigational regulations and procedures as well as with the flight safety and protocols of international and domestic procedures.

Contrary to many opinions, the proposed ASL is not a new map. It is the same map that shows, among others, the contested Scarborough Shoal and the Kalayaan maritime domain.

There should be no potential concern for Malaysia unless the map that depicts the limits of the new maritime zones conflict with Malaysia’s present understanding of the mutually agreed maritime boundaries between the two countries in the Sulu Sea, Sulawesi Sea and the southern sector of the South China Sea, where some territories around the Commodore Shoal (Terumbu Laksamana) overlap.

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