Wednesday, December 21, 2016

Philippines, China and the disputed islands

This is my personal interpretation of the events. It is based on my observations and is subject to errors.

Philippines bought the case of the disputed islands to the International Court of Justice at the Hague, Netherlands. The Court ruled in favor of the Philippines.

President Duterte did not shout "Rule of Law". Instead, he paid a state visit to China. He told President Xi of China, "Big brother, my fishermen needs to fish for a living. Can you allow them to continue their livelihood? They are poor people.

And the resources around the islands, can both our countries share these resources? Let us go for win-win, okay?

And big brother, can I invite your China enterprises to invest in the Philippines and help to build our infrastructure? We know that this is a business deal, so we will make sure that your companies get a good return on your investment, okay? "

President Xi invited President Dutarte to a state dinner. They signed the agreement on the South China Sea and on investment in the Philippines. At the state dinner, President Dutarte did not crack any jokes about polluted rivers and polluted air.

President Dutarte does know how to get a good deal for his country. He also knows that he has to respect big brother. Maybe our PM Lee should get a lesson from President Dutarte? Do you agree?



2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Mdm Lee remembers the day the Government said it would acquire the four blocks of Housing and Development Board (HDB) flats to make way for the 21.5km long North-South Expressway.

While the initial announcement back in November 2011 caught many by surprise, Mdm Lee said she had already been tipped off by her nephew a few years prior. "My nephew works at HDB and he told me one day: 'Auntie, your HDB is going to be acquired.’ And then I told my neighbours about it but they didn't believe me," she recounted.

Anonymous said...

Spot on.

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