Success for China—Enrile

Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV’s backchanneling mission in 2012 was a success not for the Philippines but for China, which was favored in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) dispute, former Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile said.

Trillanes, however, called his job as backchannel negotiator to China as a defining moment of his life.

“Looking back, it is actually the most significant achievement of my public life,” he said.

“The trouble with people is that they present themselves what they are not,” Enrile said of Trillanes.

Up to now, Enrile said what was committed by Trillanes to the Chinese was only known to him, and maybe to former President Benigno Aquino.

Enrile called Trillanes a fifth columnist or a traitor during a heated argument on the Senate floor over his mission to China, which Trillanes kept from the then Senate President.

In an interview by Daily Tribune, Enrile maintained Trillanes’ “secret mission” to China, approved by former President Aquino, proved to be contrary to the country’s interest.

“There is no question about that, he (Trillanes) was successful in the sense that he gave favor to China,” Enrile told Daily Tribune.

Enrile said Trillanes made 16 trips to Beijing at the height of the tension at Panatag Shoal (Scarborough) off Zambales in 2012.

As advised by Trillanes, Aquino ordered the pullout of two Philippine ships, a Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) and Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) vessels, from Panatag Shoal.

The agreement was for both the Philippines and Chinese ships to pull out from the area to deescalate the tension.

“There is no question about that, he (Trillanes) was successful in the sense that he gave favor to China.”

Aquino explained then that the government was ordering the withdrawal of its vessels due to a storm then at the WPS.

The Chinese ships, however, never pulled out and remain there up to now.

Worse, China went on a massive development of man-made islands in its occupied areas in the disputed WPS, even installing missile systems.

Labor undersecretary Jacinto “Jing” Paras said Trillanes and Aquino should be held criminally liable for “ceding control” to China of oil-rich Panatag Shoal on West Philippine Sea in 2012.

A former congressman, Paras issued the statement as Enrile, in an exclusive interview by Daily Tribune, lambasted Trillanes for bragging and admitting the “backchanneling efforts” he did for then President Aquino.

“The actions of Trillanes and Aquino bordered on treasonous as they, in effect, relinquished de facto presence of our military in the disputed area during a standoff with Chinese armed forces,” said Paras.

“If the Chinese have imposed a clampdown on Panatag Shoal, including stopping any joint economic exploration by claimant countries in the area, Aquino and Trillanes are hugely to blame,” stressed Paras.

Told that Trillanes considered his “backchanneling” efforts to be his greatest achievement and that Enrile reeked with sarcasm in saying Trillanes did it “for China” and not to push Philippine interests, Paras erupted into laughter.

“Finally, the failed putschist has succeeded in something – selling us out Filipinos to the Chinese. He should receive a medal from China if he hasn’t gotten one yet,” said Paras.

“But seriously, Trillanes and Aquino should fry for their actions which, it may be surmised, may have been motivated by hundreds of millions of reasons,” he added.

The Chinese, since then, has aggressively pushed its claim, particularly after the filing by the Aquino administration of a formal complaint against Beijing before the United Nations-backed Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in 2013, which resulted in a decision favoring the Philippines in 2016.

Enrile said an ongoing exploration of a Filipino consortium at the Reed Bank was stopped due to the filing of the arbitration complaint.

Enrile said Trillanes’ trip to China only created an impression to the Chinese that the Philippines is weak.

“He (Trillanes) created the impression that the Philippines is weak, and that gave China the opportunity to press its interest in the West Philippine Sea,” Enrile said.

Enrile added Trillanes was apparently “misled” by his Chinese contacts, saying “the Chinese are more intelligent than him (Trillanes).”

In an earlier interview by Daily Tribune, Enrile said he had warned Mr. Aquino that sending Trillanes to Beijing for backdoor talks on the issue in Panatag Shoal was “dangerous and very unwise.”

Enrile warned what Trillanes had committed to China could be contrary to Philippine interest.

Enrile recently claimed Trillanes’ efforts only contributed to the country losing control of the fishing ground in the Panatag or Scarborough Shoal.

Trillanes’ secret mission happened at the height of a tense standoff with China at the disputed Scarborough shoal.

“The backchannel effort was solely focused on deescalating the standoff in Panatag (shoal). This was successfully done without compromising even an inch of our territorial integrity, hence, our victory at the arbitration court,” Trillanes said.

“That conspiracy theory was already debunked by the Ombudsman. It simply doesn’t make sense that a senator would have the power to lose a piece of Philippine territory,” he added.

Paras dared Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales to prove she is not beholden to the past administration and that she has not been engaged in “the selective dispensation of justice.”

“Before retiring, Ombudsman Morales should make it up with the Filipino by filing charges against Trillanes and Aquino. She should start the ball rolling insofar as holding them accountable,” said Paras.