SUBIC BAY FREEPORT— Nearly 30 ships and tugboats staged a synchronized water salute and sounded their horns across Subic Bay on Sunday to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the Philippines’ landmark 2016 arbitral victory on the West Philippine Sea.

The tribute involved 28 vessels from government and private sectors, highlighting the significance of the July 12 anniversary of the ruling issued by an arbitral tribunal under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Senior Deputy Administrator for Operations Ronnie Yambao said the water salute was the centerpiece of the commemoration.

According to Yambao, participating vessels included eight Philippine Navy ships from the Naval Operating Base-Subic at the Redondo Peninsula, two U.S. Navy supply ships docked at the North Riviera Pier, and three vessels of the National Mapping and Resource Information Authority (NAMRIA) berthed at Boton Wharf in the former Ship Repair Facility. The remaining vessels were privately owned ships and tugboats moored at various wharves and piers throughout the Subic Bay Freeport.

Motorists and other bystanders stopped along the bay to witness the synchronized sounding of the vessels’ horns, which echoed across the harbor during the ceremony.

The commemoration honored the July 12, 2016 arbitral award, which invalidated China’s sweeping “nine-dash line” claim over much of the South China Sea and affirmed the Philippines’ maritime entitlements under international law.

The tribunal ruled that China’s “nine-dash line” has no legal basis under UNCLOS. It also recognized Bajo de Masinloc, also known as Scarborough Shoal, as a traditional fishing ground where Filipino, Chinese and Vietnamese fishermen have long exercised customary fishing rights, and found that China had unlawfully prevented Filipino fishermen from accessing the area. (Text and photos by Jun Dumaguing for Ang Pahayagan)