DOJ, SolGen finalizing environment complaint vs China

MANILA, Philippines —  The Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) are finalizing a complaint they aim to file before an international court against China for environmental damage in the West Philippine Sea, an official confirmed yesterday.

“Yes, that is true,” DOJ spokesman Mico Clavano said when asked if the planned environmental case against China was being finalized. “We are coordinating with the Office of the Solicitor General. They are still collecting evidence and making sure that all attachments are made on the complaint,” he added.

Clavano said the DOJ and OSG are actively gathering evidence to strengthen the position of the government “in such a way that it will hold the scrutiny in the international tribunal.”

“The pictures that we got, which were distributed to the media, are not enough. We need to be able to provide some other circumstances or testimonies that will corroborate with the pictures,” he said.

The DOJ official said both agencies are still discussing where exactly to file the complaints.

In October 2023, the DOJ bared the administration’s decision to proceed with the filing of an environment case against China before an international tribunal citing the “innumerable and immeasurable” damage it has inflicted on the Philippine environment.

Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla earlier said that they hoped to have the case ready for filing before an international tribunal by the early part of 2024.

The government’s confirmation of its plan to file environmental case against China came as Filipino fishers based on Pag-Asa Island vowed to defy Beijing’s unilateral fishing ban in the South China Sea. “We will not be cowed by the order of China. We will continue to fish. We are in our territory in the West Philippine Sea,” Pag-Asa Island Fisherfolk Association president Larry Hugo said in a radio interview yesterday.

Hugo noted that members of his group have increased in number to 72. “We have 72 members and we will continue to fish even if there is threat of arrest,” he added.

“The Coast Guard watches us while we are fishing,” he pointed out.

He noted Chinese vessels so far have been ignoring Filipino fishing