PH fights China intrusion in media

While China continues building without letup, Filipinos at least will be better informed about the issues on the South China Sea or West Philippine Sea.

The government is continuing its information drive on the dispute with China with the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) set to air the second part of its documentary series on the country’s historical right over the waters and islands on Monday.

The DFA said the next installment of the series follows the successful airing of the first episode, “Kalayaan,” which tackled the economic losses the Philippines has incurred due to the dispute.

Partnering with the Presidential Communications Operations Office, the DFA funded the documentary to inform the public about the issue, something Beijing did in 2013 when it released an eight-part documentary titled “Journey on the South China Sea.”

The second episode titled “Pamanang Karagatan (Inherited Sea)” will tackle the historical angle of the West Philippine Sea and South China Sea issue, the DFA said in a statement.

Among those featured in the episode is Associate Justice Antonio T. Carpio of the Supreme Court who has extensively researched and lectured on the issue.

This second installment will be launched online on June 22 at 4 p.m. on the official Facebook accounts of President Aquino (www.facebook.com/presidentnoy) and the DFA (www.facebook.com/dfaphl), as well as on the Facebook pages of the series hosts Lourd de Veyra and Rodolfo Sabayton Jr. and director RA Rivera Jr.

Following the social media launch, the second episode will be aired over People’s Television Network (PTV 4) at 5:30 p.m. on the same day.

Replays will be shown on PTV 4 at 5:30 p.m. and at 10:30 p.m. from June 23 to 26.

The third part of the documentary series tackling the legal issues surrounding the South China Sea dispute will be released in early July before or after the scheduled July 7-13 oral hearings set by the Hague-based arbitral tribunal on the arbitration case filed by the Philippines against China.

Charles Jose, spokesperson for the DFA, in a previous news briefing said the DFA had begun to intensify its education campaign to keep the public informed as China tries to cement its claims over the South China Sea through its rapid island building activities.