Tribunal null and void from the beginning

The Hague-based arbitral tribunal on Tuesday passed its ruling on the case unilaterally brought by the Philippines in its dispute with China in the South China Sea, but China remains firm on its stance of "non-acceptance, non-recognition and non-compliance". There is enough reason for China to do so, because the ruling, along with the arbitration, is null and void and thus not binding.

The Philippines filed the case three years ago without the consent of China, which since then has been reiterating the reasons for refusing to accept the arbitration and the ruling. Since Manila's unilateral move is a violation of international law and judicial practices, the arbitration and ruling make no difference to China's legal status in the South China Sea.

The issues Manila submitted to the arbitral tribunal were, in fact, beyond the scope of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. There are still disputes over China's maritime claims in the South China Sea, and whether China's legal actions in the waters infringed other neighbors' interests is related to territorial claims and maritime delimitation, which are beyond the realm of UNCLOS.