China gives Police more sea rights
CHINA: China has granted its border patrol police the right to
board and expel foreign ships entering disputed waters in the South
China Sea, the media reported Thursday. The move comes after Beijing
issued new passports containing a map showing its claim to almost the
whole of the South China Sea, infuriating its neighbours. Vietnam and
the Philippines are refusing to stamp the documents.
The southern Chinese province of Hainan passed new regulations this
week allowing local police "to board, seize and expel foreign ships
illegally entering the province's sea areas", the state-run Global Times
reported.
Activities defined as illegal by the new regulation include
"illegally halting or dropping anchor... and carrying out publicity
campaigns that endanger China's national security", the official Xinhua
news agency said.
Hainan province administers around two million square kilometres
(800,000 sq miles) of ocean waters including the Spratly islands, which
are also claimed in whole or in part by the Philippines, Vietnam,
Brunei, Malaysia and Taiwan. The South China Sea includes some of the
world's most important shipping lanes and is believed to be rich in
fossil fuels.
The Global Times quoted Li Zhaojie, a professor at Beijing's Tsinghua
University, as saying the regulation could lead to stricter enforcement
of Beijing's right to expel ships entering its territory illegally. Li
said these rights were granted by a UN convention.
"In the past, when foreign ships broke the UN convention, the best
thing our patrol could do was chase them out of China's waters. The new
regulation will change that, and give the patrol force the legal means
to actually do its job."
AFP
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