MANILA – The National Security Council (NSC) denounced China’s declaration of a so-called “Huangyan Island National Nature Reserve” at Bajo de Masinloc (Scarborough Shoal), calling it patently illegal and a pretext for occupation.

National Security Adviser Eduardo Año said the move violates the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the final and binding 2016 Arbitral Award, and the 2002 Declaration on the Conduct of Parties.

“This move by the PRC is less about protecting the environment and more about justifying its control over a maritime feature that is part of the territory of the Philippines,” Año said.

He noted that the shoal lies within the country’s exclusive economic zone.

He also pointed out the contradiction in Beijing’s declaration, citing evidence since 2016 of large-scale harvesting of endangered species and reef destruction by Chinese fishermen, activities that were even cited by the Arbitral Tribunal.

“To now claim stewardship over an ecosystem that they themselves have damaged is both contradictory and misleading,” Año said.

The NSC emphasized that genuine protection of Bajo de Masinloc requires cooperation, transparency, and adherence to international law, not unilateral declarations that restrict Filipino fisherfolk under the guise of conservation.

The agency said it fully supports the Department of Foreign Affairs’ filing of a formal diplomatic protest against what it described as an illegal and illegitimate act by China.