Topic: Territorial Dispute in the South China Sea
Country: South Africa
Delegate Name: Kelly McDonagh
School: Forest Hills Eastern High School
Topic page: background guide and all position papers All South Africa position papers GLIMUN 2015 committees
Hostility among China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei, Vietnam, Taiwan and the Philippines continues to grow as the dispute in the South China Sea remains unresolved. The conflicts formed around the idea of who has the right to claim the South China Sea and the Paracel and Spratly islands. The UN convention on Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) is expected to assist in resolving territorial disputes, although it contains no express provisions to assist states in determining competing claims to sovereignty over land territory. Therefore, the UNCLOS is incomprehensible, and does not stipulate exactly how the sea claims should be dealt with. It is essential for the document to be amended, for it will eliminate any confusion in future instances. South Africa takes this issue seriously, because if this conflict is not resolved, the countries who are involved may take threatening actions in order to take control of the region being claimed. Although South Africa intends to stay away from being involved in this dispute, it is crucial to keep China as one of our closest allies. Roughly 9.5% of our imports come from China and roughly 15.5% of South Africa’s exports go to China, making them South Africa’s number one importer and exporter. In order to maintain a working economy, keeping a steady relationship with China is vital.
This topic has not heavily concerned South Africa directly due to our geographical location, but does indirectly affect us economically and socially. As mentioned previously, keeping a well-established relationship with China is pivotal. South Africa’s unemployment and poverty rates are among the highest in the world. Due to the struggling economy, losing a major trading partner would be incredibly devastating. Another reason why South Africa supports China in claiming the South China Sea region is because of their civil approach to this topic. China asserts that they will not classify the territorial gain as a sign of advancing power. At the Xiangshan regional defence forum in Beijing, Fan Changlong, vice-chair of China’s Central Military Commission, made a pledge that would calm the other members in this dispute. Changlong claims that the country would “never recklessly resort to the use of force, even on issues bearing on sovereignty”. This displays an act of assuring neighboring countries that China is not intending to claim the region in a harmful manner. The nation has clearly distinguished itself from the rest by soothing the other nations from Changlong’s pledge.
South Africa can also relate to territorial disputes, for we have experienced similar issues before. The South African Border War, commonly referred to as the Angolan Bush War in South Africa, was a conflict that took place from 1966 to 1989 largely in South West Africa (now Namibia) and Angola between South Africa and its allied forces. The outcome of this lengthy war left Southwest Africa in the hands of Namibia. This symbolizes South Africa’s persistent actions in order to find a resolution. The disputes in the South China Sea relates to what the Angolan Bush war consisted of. The issue our country dealt with demonstrates our knowledge and experience with territorial claims.
Alternative solutions to territorial claims include leaving the territory as a neutral region, or dividing the land and waters evenly amongst the countries that partake in this conflict. Granting territory to every country that is involved is not only complicated, but extremely risky too. South Africa suggests leaving China to claim sea and the islands as part of their territory. China exhibits their persistence and civil willingness, and realizing that this issue has existed for centuries, China believes they deserve the right to claim what is rightfully theirs. South Africa would like to see the countries create a documentation to address the problem in a professional manner that does not take away the rights of any single country. Due to China’s fair declaration of sovereignty over the territory before Malaysia, Brunei, China, Indonesia, Vietnam, Taiwan or the Philippines ever took a claim, the rights are granted to China.
