Humps in the Sea: Understanding the
ABSTRACT
The Philippines has been parrying with the international countries in terms of military, economic, diplomacy, politics, and information. However, it can do little to stand “toe-to- toe” with a big state whether in terms of military, politics, and diplomacy. The Philippines currently rely on alliance and international organization just to be heard, noticed, and stand a chance in any political issues. Somehow, the Philippines neglect to uplift its political and diplomatic status due to the lack of national power. Apparently, exploiting the geographical features of the Philippines, especially the chokepoints, provided the answer. The chokepoints carry so much control and influence which could uplift the Philippines domain of influence and geopolitical weight. The challenge then is to make sure that these chokepoints are secured and managed well. This is the objective of the study, developing a robust and comprehensive maritime security strategy for one of the most important chokepoints in the Philippines, the Sibutu Passage/Strait. The success of the strategy will then determine the position of the Philippines in the international community by playing an active role in securing important international trade routes.
Keywords: Sulu-Celebes Sea, Sibutu Passage, maritime security, strategic chokepoint
INTRODUCTION
The word “hump” originated from the Dutch word “homp” meaning lump in English. According to Word Reference the word “hump” when used as a noun is a rounded lump that sticks up and as a verb to
“hump” means “to raise the back as to form a hump” like some animals do when they are scared and annoyed (Word Reference, 2017). In which case when used as a noun, the “hump” could be an obstacle on a smooth path that needs to be flattened, while when used as a verb, the “hump” could be used to show strength when threatened by a much stronger opponent just like a frog would do when it is about to be eaten by a much larger and stronger snake. The “hump”
will illustrate the security situation of the Sibutu Passage/Strait where the different threats undermine the security of the strategic chokepoint. Likewise, the meaning of a “hump” use as a verb will show the posture of the strength of the Philippines while implementing maritime security as
a strategic recourse that could uplift the status of the Philippines as a caretaker of an important strategic chokepoint.
National Power of the Philippines
In the document National Security Strategy (NSS) of the Philippines, five (5) instruments of national power have been included namely: political and legal;
diplomatic; informational and intelligence;
economic and technological; and military and law enforcement (Duterte, 2018).
However, there are no concrete sources or literature on the elements of the national power of the Philippines where to apply the instruments. Determining the element of national power is important to determine whether it is satisfying the national interest of the Philippines because the distribution of national power per se in the international community is not equal. This implies that no country can be found not exerting effort to increase the level of its national power
to enhance its position in the international system (Zarghani, 2010).
Lacking pertinent sources or related literature on what are the elements of the national power of the Philippines, necessitate the study to construct the Philippines’ element of national power by anchoring on the University of Political Science categorization of natural power. The University of Political Science constructed five (5) categories of national power namely:
1) natural, 2) scientific and technological, 3) political, 4) social and ideological, and 5) external elements.
Arguably Philippines have properly exploited the population especially the Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) numbering 2.2 million individuals as of 2019 (PSA, 2020). These significant numbers of Filipinos working outside the country have provided an economic boost to the Philippines through their remittances. The contribution of the OFWs to the Philippine economy has branded them as the new heroes of the country. This is an indicator that the Government of the Philippines (GPh) has been exploiting the population as an element of national power.
Tawi-Tawi and Sibutu Passage/
Strait at the forefront of Sea Lines of Communication (SLOC)
Tawi-Tawi is the southernmost province of the Philippines made up of 307 islands and islets wherein located in the north and west of the province is the Sulu Sea, while on the east and south is the Celebes Sea.
Tawi-Tawi is part of the Sulu Archipelago Reef Complex, known as the apex of Global Marine Diversity (Arsad, 2008).
The Sibutu Passage/Strait, on the other hand, is located in the municipality of
Sibutu which is a narrow and deep passage of 18 miles or 29 km wide that separates the Philippines islands of Tawi-Tawi and Borneo. United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) recognized Sibutu Passage/Strait as an international waterway where ships under the customary international law enjoy the right of innocent passage (Kapunan, 2019).
In the aspect of security, Sibutu municipality is relatively peaceful, which is also the same as Tawi-Tawi province.
However, it is being traversed by the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) when conducting maritime kidnapping in Sulu or Celebes sea. The frequent venture of the ASG to conduct maritime terrorism gave the passage a bad reputation especially when Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in Asia (ReCAAP) issued several alert advisories to international shipping on the risk of maritime kidnapping in the area.
World Trade: Philippines control secondary maritime routes
It has always been claimed that the Philippines is a strategically located archipelagic country that lay between East and Southeast Asia. In fact, in the perspective of the United States (US), the Philippines is a key ally that provides a rebalance of military power in Asia, especially with the current resurgence and assertiveness of China in the region (Cook, 2016). However, this is only an allied perspective and purely from a realist or military standpoint that is debatable. Perhaps this argument is only meant to build up the allied status of the Philippines and portray that it is important to preserve diplomatic relations which satisfy US national interests. Other than the military aspect, the alternative lens would be in the economic and international trade.
According to United Nations (UN), the world’s oceans account for nearly 90 percent of all international commerce (Global Security, n.d.). Among the major maritime routes in international commerce are the Panama Canal, Cape of Good Hope, Gibraltar, Suez Canal, Strait of Hormuz, Bosporus, Bab el-Mandab, and Strait of Malacca (Rodrigue, 2017).
Maritime kidnapping prominent threat in Sibutu Passage/Strait
Since the founding of the ASG in 1991, the group has been involved in kidnapping and terrorism activity. But during that time, the kidnapping activities of the ASG were mostly abduction on land and not at sea. It was only in the past decade, that maritime kidnapping was conducted by the ASG specifically targeting foreign merchant vessels who usually pay a large amount of ransom money (IPAC, 2019). Henceforth, the ASG’s maritime kidnapping became the most prominent threat in the Sulu and Celebes Seas. The ASG’s maritime kidnapping peaked in 2016 with 15 incidents victimizing 57. Sibutu Passage/Strait then was being dubbed as the “New Somalia” or
“Southeast Asia’s Somalia” referring to the Somalia pirates that have been thriving in the Gulf of Aden.
Countering maritime kidnapping in Sulu-Celebes Seas
Countering the threat of maritime kidnapping became the primary objective of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) with the assistance of other security agencies such as the Philippine National Police (PNP), Philippine Coast Guard (PCG), and other government agencies. Some of the maritime security measures implemented by the AFP, PCG, and PNP are the following (WMC, 2018):
1. Installation of seven (7) Littoral Monitoring Station (LMS). LMS are monitoring stations equipped with electronic monitoring equipment to monitor transiting ships in the area of operation.
2. Identification of ASG personalities involved in maritime kidnapping as well as identifying vessels used by the ASG.
3. PCG and PNP conducted an inventory and eventually tagging of all vessels in Sulu, Tawi-Tawi, and Basilan.
4. Identification of maritime routes and transit/refueling points used by the ASG in their maritime kidnapping venture.
5. Relatedly, Western Mindanao Command (WMC) stationed AFP detachment in all identified transit/
refueling points of the ASG.
6. Implementation of naval and PCG blockade in Sulu and Tawi-Tawi province.
7. Creation of inter-agency task force to curb maritime kidnapping.
8. And related to the implementation of Martial Law in Mindanao, maritime curfew in Sulu, Tawi-Tawi and Basilan province.
Turning to Security Cooperative Agreement for solution
The Sulu-Celebes Sea has become a hotbed of maritime kidnapping conducted by the ASG in the last decade. Due to the rise of maritime kidnapping together with other non-traditional security concerns such
as piracy, armed robbery, smuggling, illegal fishing, and transnational crimes, the foreign ministers and chiefs of defense forces of the Philippines, Indonesia, and Malaysia signed a Joint Declaration on an immediate measure to address security issues in the Sulu-Celebes Sea on 5 May 2016. This then led to the actual signing of the Trilateral Cooperative Arrangement (TCA) in Jakarta on 14 July 2016 (Al-faruq, 2018). The initial goal of the TCA was to counter the spate of maritime kidnappings mainly perpetuated by ASG in 2016 and strengthen the protection of sailors and fishermen crossing the Sulu and Sulawesi Seas (IPAC, 2019).
Undoubtedly Sibutu Passage/Strait is facing several challenges and threats, and the maritime security implemented has some gaps and constraints that limit its success. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to develop a robust and effective maritime security strategy at Sibutu Passage/
Strait as an important strategic chokepoint.
The study will further analyze the existing constraints and challenges that complicate the maritime security in the passage and eventually present strategic options available to national security administrators. The ultimate objective is to elevate the status of the Philippines as a caretaker of important maritime chokepoints, which can be a source of national power. For these reasons, this study will answer the following questions:
1. To what extent is Sibutu Passage/
Strait important to the international maritime trade/navigation?
2. What is the current maritime security environment in Sibutu Passage/Strait and its peripheral areas?
3. What are the constraints and challenges affecting the security of Sibutu Passage/Strait as a strategic chokepoint?
4. What are the strategic options available in securing Sibutu Passage/
Strait and how should the Philippine government implement a suitable maritime security?
In order to implement a suitable maritime security strategy in Sibutu Passage/
Strait, the study will pursue the following objectives:
1. To determine the strategic importance of Sibutu Passage/Strait in the international maritime trade/
navigation
2. To understand the current maritime security environment at Sibutu Passage/Strait and its peripheral areas 3. To understand the constraints and challenges that threaten the security of Sibutu Passage/Strait
4. To present strategic options in securing strategic chokepoints and determine how should the Philippine Government implement a suitable maritime security
Elements of National Power – Definitions, Functions, Measurement
In the past century, power politics used in international relations (IR) would most likely lead to war. Nowadays, countries use national power not necessarily to go to war but to outpower others. In the book of Seyed Hadi Zarghani titled “Measurement of National Power: Definitions, Functions, Measurement,” published in April 2010, it presented a new model as a result of studying 28 theories conceptualized by different scholars. The model provides a basis to relate the importance of the Sibutu Passage/
Strait with national power.
National power links to national strategy and national interests
Zarghani’s model describes that there is a three-way relationship between national power, national strategy, and national.
He claimed that “the quality of level of satisfying national interests depends on the level and quality of national power of that country. In order to establish a relationship between national interest and national power, strategy plays an important role. In other words, strategy is manifested between two phenomena and issues; one is power and its tools and the second one is the goal and objective.
Relationship of national power to geopolitical weight and domain of influence
Aside from the relationship of national power with national interest and national strategy, the model also established the relationship between geopolitical weight, the domain of influence, and national power.
Zarghani said that geopolitical weight determines the position of a country relative to its national power and eventually affects its national strategy.
Relatively, Zarghani further identified that national power has two (2) aspects namely: aspect of influence and aspect of force. He argues that “aspect of influence is more subjective and countries and governments try to apply their power by imposing their influence on others and by fulfilling their determination. The aspect of force is more objective and depends on military power and punishment tools which are used by governments in the next steps and when the aspect of influence does not prove effective” (2010).
United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)
The main construct of this study is anchored in understanding the provisions of UNCLOS. UNCLOS is an international agreement on the law of the sea to settle issues of coastal jurisdiction and it has defined the coastal jurisdiction of inland waters, territorial waters, archipelagic water, continental shelf, and EEZ (Sailor Insight).
The Philippines is one of the original signatories to the international agreement signed in November 1982. It must abide by the provisions of UNCLOS. Among the important provisions of UNCLOS is the provision in Part IV titled the "Archipelagic States," which includes all articles from 46 – 54. The provisions in Article 47 - 49 provided a legal status of the GPh to define the archipelagic baseline. Article 52 further defines the right of innocent passage wherein a foreign ship can invoke while passing REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
through archipelagic waters. Article 52 titled
“Right of Innocent Passage” specifies that the Philippines can suspend temporarily the right of innocent passage of foreign ships if it is essential for the protection of its security but enforced only on specified areas and upon publication (United Nations, 1982).
Article 53 titled “Right of Archipelagic”
sea lanes passage invokes the right of the Philippines to designate sea lanes and air routes termed as archipelagic sea lanes where it can prescribe the axis of sea lanes and traffic separation schemes for the safe passage of ships.
Experts of Sea Power (Manhan and Fisher): Vision on Command of the Sea
One construct of this study was the concept of sea power concerning maritime security and strategic chokepoints. Two (2) renowned fathers of sea power Captain Alfred Thayer Mahan and British First Sea Lord John Arbuthnot Fisher exemplified the command of the sea which requires the control of the strategic chokepoints.
Alfred Mahan’s book titled "The Influence of Sea Power Upon History 1660 – 1783" discusses the following: the elements of sea power; accounts and analysis of different states, maritime countries, and continents; maritime conflicts; as well as maritime events and incidents from 1660 to 1783.
Another renowned expert on sea power is John Fisher who like Mahan invoked the command of the sea. What is significant in Fisher’s theory is the importance of natural chokepoints in the sea. Fisher’s argument on strategic chokepoint follows the same argument that this study pursued which will be further explained in the succeeding related literature on chokepoints.
Importance of Strategic Maritime Chokepoints
An important construct of this study was understanding the importance of maritime chokepoints. With the world oceans catering for 90 percent of the international commerce, it is but fitting to know which maritime areas constrict the movement of shipping. As defined in this study, maritime chokepoints include straits, capes, canals, and passages which all constrict the passage of shipping to a narrow lane that offers potential control of the world’s sea lines of communication (Global Security, n.d.).
From a realist point of view, such as Mahan and Fisher, maritime chokepoints have the potential of commanding the sea, gaining the advantage, and denying its adversaries freedom of movement.
Throughout history, seapower wage war for control of chokepoints through decisive operations to have control of the sea (Global Security, n.d.).
In contrast to a liberalist and neo-realist point of view, a maritime chokepoint is the lifeblood of the world economy. According to Rockford Weitz. in his study of Strategic Maritime Chokepoints, the international trade flows and merge in the following strategic waterways: the Malacca Straits, the Strait of Gibraltar, the Suez Canal, the Turkish Straits, Bab al-Mandab, the Strait of Hormuz, the Cape of Good Hope, Cape Horn, the Bering Strait, the English Channel, the Danish Straits, the Panama Canal, and the Windward and Mona Passages. Each maritime chokepoint has a different strategic significance depending on its geography, history, infrastructure, and availability of alternative sea routes (2018).
The study used a modified Evolving US Army Operation Design Framework
introduced by LTC Mike Ercolano to Command and General Staff Course Class
#59 on 30 May 2014. The original framework is shown in the figure 1.
The US Army design methodology provides planners a system to frame complex, ambiguous and interactive environments. A process is a systematic approach that promotes holistic thinking (Dagher, 2018). The process starts with the guidance, orders, policy, or law handed down to address a certain issue or problem. The first activity as explained by Jean Dagher is framing the environment which involves developing an in-depth understanding of the current operational environment and envisioning the desired one. Using the US Army design methodology as a basis, the researcher modified the framework to suit the requirement of this study as shown in figure 2.
Conceptual Framework
The study’s conceptual framework still follows the US Army design methodology of having an environment, problem, and solution frame. The modification however was made, first instead of guidance, the modified framework used national power as the anchor of the study. To understand the environment, the study first determined the key actors. Then the study analyzed the following: concepts; theories; international laws; structures; current situation; the different threats; existing security measures;
and other data required to complete the desired and existing condition. The discrepancies between the existing and desired condition generated constraints and gaps in the system. The constraints and gaps produce in the environment frame became part of the problem frame.
In the strategic option and solution frame, different possible solutions were
Figure 1. Evolving US Army Operational Framework (Source: Presentation of LTC Ercolano to CGSC 59)
presented, however, only those that are viable and supportable were adopted in this study. Also, the strategic option determined by the study was analyzed according to the advantages and disadvantages it carries and its possible implications. After undergoing the process, the study finally deliberated the suitable recourse to undertake that
formed the maritime security strategy of Sibutu Passage/Strait. The strategic option or solution frame was then validated to the intervening variables as to its relevance.
Finally, the developed maritime security strategy was aligned to national interest in relation to national power.
Figure 2. Modified US Army design methodology framework.
METHODOLOGY
The study employed a qualitative and explanatory research to know the unknowns given limited data on the environment of Sibutu and Tawi-Tawi. The study then relied on document analysis, key informant interviews (KII), two (2) focus group discussions (FGDs) and content analysis in order to gather the much-needed data.
To concretize the argument and discourse of the study, several analytical tools were used to know the unknowns and discover the relationship of the different variables.
The analytical tools used are the following:
Stakeholder Analysis to know the key actors who could influence the purpose of the study; Environmental Framing to provide a comprehensive understanding of the existing environment and eventually determine what is the desired system that should prevail in Sibutu Passage/Strait and Tawi-Tawi; Causal Loop Diagram to create a clear picture of the complex but interrelated system existing in the passage and its peripheral areas; and Bueger’s “Semiotic” Framework to find