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Foreign Secretary Enrique Manalo said other countries should also oppose China’s illegal order that authorized its coast guard to detain, for up to 60 days without trial, what it considers foreign “trespassers” in waters being claimed by Beijing.
According to Manalo, the order has no legal basis yet affects not only the Philippines, which has an active maritime dispute with China, but also other countries with vessels plying the South China Sea, a strategic and resource-rich waterway which China claims almost entirely to be part of its territory.
“The President has been very clear that that announcement by China is unacceptable and in my view has no legal basis,” Manalo told reporters in an interview on Wednesday.
“What’s even more worrying is that it doesn’t only affect the Philippines; it will affect every country in the world, theoretically. I really don’t see the legal basis of that.
