20/08/2026
SANTIAGO, 18 August 2026 — In celebration of milestone events in 2026 – the 10th Anniversary of the 2016 South China Sea Arbitral Award in July, the Maritime and Archipelagic Nation Awareness Month (MANAMo) in September, and the 80th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the Philippines and Chile in July – the Philippine Embassy in Chile partnered with the University of San Sebastian to organize an academic colloquium entitled, “Synergies Between Multilateral Treaties and Judicial Precedents in Ocean Governance” in Santiago.
The event brought together members of the diplomatic corps, representatives of the Chilean government, the academe, legal experts, and policy practitioners.
Discussions were anchored on how binding judicial precedents and multilateral legal frameworks – in particular, the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the 2016 Arbitral Award on the South China Sea, and the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) Agreement – strengthen the rules-based international order.
In her opening remarks, Philippine Ambassador to Chile, Her Excellency Celeste Vinzon-Balatbat, highlighted the Philippines's enduring identity as an archipelagic state and emphasized the vital role of international maritime law in ensuring a peaceful, predictable, and sustainable ocean governance.
“The Philippines respects and upholds international law as a means available for all states, big or small, to resolve disputes peacefully,” said Ambassador Vinzon-Balatbat.
Ambassador Vinzon-Balatbat cited the 2016 Arbitral Award on the South China Sea as an example of “right being might”. In the words of law author Christina Hioureas, “For small nations, international law functions as an equalizer….When a small nation uses the law to obtain a favorable opinion or judgment, it does not protect its interests alone, it advances the international rule of law for all…That is why it is no exaggeration to say that small nations are often the custodians of the international legal order. Because they must rely on it, they are the ones most likely to strengthen it. Because they cannot take it for granted, they are the ones most likely to innovate within it.”
To show the common interest between Chile and the Philippines in protecting the world’s oceans, the colloquium featured two (2) experts from the field namely Professor Jay L. Batongbacal from the Philippines and Atty. Diego Alonso Lillo Goffre from Chile.
Joining the colloquium virtually from the Philippines, Professor Jay L. Batongbacal, Director of the University of the Philippines Institute for Maritime Affairs and Law of the Sea (IMLOS) highlighted the relevance of the rules-based international order in modern society when settling disputes, and cited case studies of UNCLOS in practice in ocean governance.
“Whether through the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS), the International Court of Justice (ICJ), or arbitral tribunals, these mechanisms ensure that the interpretation of the maritime rights of nations should not be left to the unilateral whim of the most powerful, but instead should be determined by the impartial application of law,” said Professor Batongbacal.
Atty. Diego Alonso Lillo Goffre, Senior Lawyer of the Asociación Interamericana para la Defensa del Ambiente (AIDA), likewise presented lessons from the 2016 Arbitral Award on the South China Sea.
Atty. Lillo discussed how UNCLOS determines the maritime rights of states and how the 2016 Arbitral Award reinforces UNCLOS and the obligation of parties to protect and preserve the marine environment.
Atty. Lillo likewise discussed how the BBNJ works in ocean governance and the benefit of the BBNJ Agreement to developing countries and maritime nations. “The BBNJ can provide a platform and consultation mechanism for experts to take an intersectoral, coordinated, and coherent approach to protect marine life in international waters as well as operationalize the protection of marine biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction (ABNJ)”, said Atty. Lillo.
The presentations were followed by a lively question and answer session. The colloquium was organized as an academic discourse by independent legal experts, whose views and opinions of the resource speakers do not necessarily reflect the position of the Philippine government and any other country.
To honor 80 years of friendship between the Philippines and Chile, the Philippine Embassy hosted cocktails featuring Philippine and Chilean food, including Filipino favorites lumpia and turon and smoked salmon from Chile.
As maritime nations bordering the Pacific Ocean, both the Philippines and Chile face common challenges in the maritime sphere.
Celebrated annually in September by virtue of Presidential Proclamation No. 316 series of 2017, MANAMo aims to increase awareness of maritime and archipelagic issues among Filipinos and international partners. - END
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SANTIAGO, 18 de Agosto de 2026 — Para celebrar acontecimientos más importantes de– el 10 aniversario del Laudo Arbitral sobre el Mar del Sur de China en el mes de julio, el Mese de Concientización como Nación Marítima y Archipelágica (MANAMo por sus siglas en inglés) en septiembre y el 80 aniversario desde el establecimiento de relaciones diplomáticas entre Chile y Filipinas en julio – la Embajada de Filipinas en Chile realizó en conjunto con la Universidad San Sebastián un conversatorio académico llamado “Sinergia entre Tratados Multilaterales y Precedentes Legales en temas de Gobernanza de los Océanos” en Santiago.
La actividad reunió a miembros del Cuerpo Diplomático, representantes del gobierno de Chile, expertos en temas jurídicos, académicos y profesionales de la política.
El debate se centró en cómo los precedentes judiciales vinculantes y los marcos jurídicos multilaterales —en particular, la Convención de las Naciones Unidas sobre el Derecho del Mar (CONVEMAR) de 1982, el laudo arbitral de 2016 sobre el Mar del Sur de China y el Acuerdo sobre la Biodiversidad más allá de la Jurisdicción Nacional (BBNJ)— fortalecen el orden internacional basado en normas.
