Thursday, December 5, 2024

South China Sea issue: Historical European maps show Huangyan Dao has never been Philippine territory

In 1997, the Philippines began to claim sovereignty over China's Huangyan Dao.
Their primary reference is the 1734 map, A Hydrographical and Chorographical Chart of the Philippine Islands, created by Spanish cartographer Pedro Murillo Velarde.
The Philippines assert that the "Panacot Shoal" marked on the map refers to Huangyan Dao.
But historical Western maps from different periods show that Huangyan Dao has never been Philippine territory.
This video is based on Professor Li's paper to clarify why Huangyan Dao is not Philippine territory.
 
 From CGTN
 
European maps from the 18th century show that Huangyan Dao has never been Philippine territory. Zhang Chen has more. 

Huangyan Dao is the only exposed reef within China's Zhongsha Islands.
In 1997, the Philippines began to claim sovereignty over Huangyan Dao, citing Western historical maps as evidence.
 
Galit, Panacot, and Lumbay shown off the coast of Central Luzon in the 1734 map
 
Their primary reference is the 1734 map, a Hydrographical and Chorographical Chart of the Philippine Islands. 
The Philippines asserts that the "Panacot Shoal" marked on the map refers to Huangyan Dao, arguing the name "Panacot" is derived from its native language Tagalog, meaning "threat", and was therefore discovered by Philippine natives.

However, Chinese historical geographer Professor Li Xiaocong from Peking University refutes these claims.

The first reference to Panacot Shoal appears in Velarde's 1734 map, showing three reefs off Luzon's western coast.
 
1744 Reduced version
 
The claim that Panacot Shoal represents Huangyan Dao relies on this map and its 1744 edition. However, Huangyan Dao itself was accurately depicted on European maps following a 1748 incident when the British East India Company's ship, Scarborough, ran aground there. 
The British subsequently named the reef "Scarborough Shoal."
 
 
After this incident, Europeans incorporated the reef into navigation maps, such as the French Chart of the China Sea in 1766, 
 
 
A General Chart of the China Sea, Drawn from the Journals of the European Navigators, particularly from those Collected by Capt. Hayter. (1778)
 
These maps clearly distinguish Huangyan Dao from the three shoals.
 
Mapa de las Yslas Filipinas (Map of the Philippine Islands)
Compiled in 1734 by the Spaniards

Additionally, the 1734 and 1744 Spanish maps predate the British shipwreck, indicating that neither Filipinos nor Spaniards were aware of Huangyan Dao at the time.
If they had known, the British would have likely avoided the reef.
Therefore, the 1734 map does not substantiate Philippine sovereignty over Huangyan Dao.

In April 1898, the United States declared war on Spain.
The ensuing Treaty of Paris, signed later that year, ceded the Philippines to the U.S. and set its western boundary at 118 degrees east longitude, while Huangyan Dao lies at 117 degrees 50 minutes east, placing it outside Philippine territory.

In 1902, the Pronouncing Gazetteer and Geographical Dictionary of the Philippine Islands published by the U.S. Government Printing Office detailed the Philippines’ territorial scope as defined by the Treaty of Paris, explicitly placing Huangyan Dao outside Philippine boundaries.

In 1908, the U.S. and the Philippines reaffirmed the boundary at 118 degrees east longitude, the limit set by the Treaty of Paris.

In conclusion, Huangyan Dao was neither discovered by Philippine natives nor ever incorporated within Philippine boundaries.
This is substantiated by legal records, historical documentation, and international recognition, including by the United States and the Philippine government itself.
 
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