1. Magallona v. Ermita.pdf - The Case EN BANC This original...

EN BANC
[G.R. No. 187167. August 16, 2011.]
PROF. MERLIN M. MAGALLONA, AKBAYAN PARTY-LIST
REP. RISA HONTIVEROS, PROF. HARRY C. ROQUE, JR.,
AND UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES COLLEGE OF LAW
STUDENTS, ALITHEA BARBARA ACAS, VOLTAIRE
ALFERES, CZARINA MAY ALTEZ, FRANCIS ALVIN ASILO,
SHERYL BALOT, RUBY AMOR BARRACA, JOSE JAVIER
BAUTISTA, ROMINA BERNARDO, VALERIE PAGASA
BUENAVENTURA, EDAN MARRI CAÑETE, VANN ALLEN
DELA CRUZ, RENE DELORINO, PAULYN MAY DUMAN,
SHARON ESCOTO, RODRIGO FAJARDO III, GIRLIE
FERRER, RAOULLE OSEN FERRER, CARLA REGINA
GREPO, ANNA MARIE CECILIA GO, IRISH KAY KALAW,
MARY ANN JOY LEE, MARIA LUISA MANALAYSAY, MIGUEL
RAFAEL MUSNGI, MICHAEL OCAMPO, JAKLYN HANNA
PINEDA, WILLIAM RAGAMAT, MARICAR RAMOS, ENRIK
FORT REVILLAS, JAMES MARK TERRY RIDON, JOHANN
FRANTZ RIVERA IV, CHRISTIAN RIVERO, DIANNE MARIE
ROA, NICHOLAS SANTIZO, MELISSA CHRISTINA SANTOS,
CRISTINE MAE TABING, VANESSA ANNE TORNO, MARIA
ESTER VANGUARDIA, and MARCELINO VELOSO III ,
petitioners , vs . HON. EDUARDO ERMITA, IN HIS CAPACITY
AS EXECUTIVE SECRETARY, HON. ALBERTO ROMULO, IN
HIS CAPACITY AS SECRETARY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF
FOREIGN AFFAIRS, HON. ROLANDO ANDAYA, IN HIS
CAPACITY AS SECRETARY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF
BUDGET AND MANAGEMENT, HON. DIONY VENTURA, IN
HIS CAPACITY AS ADMINISTRATOR OF THE NATIONAL
MAPPING & RESOURCE INFORMATION AUTHORITY, and
HON. HILARIO DAVIDE, JR., IN HIS CAPACITY AS
REPRESENTATIVE OF THE PERMANENT MISSION OF THE
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES TO THE UNITED NATIONS ,
respondents .
DECISION
CARPIO , J
p
:
The Case
This original action for the writs of certiorari and prohibition assails
the constitutionality of Republic Act No. 9522 1 (RA 9522) adjusting the
country's archipelagic baselines and classifying the baseline regime of
nearby territories.
EScAID
The Antecedents
In 1961, Congress passed Republic Act No. 3046 (RA 3046) 2
demarcating the maritime baselines of the Philippines as an archipelagic
State.
3
This law followed the framing of the Convention on the Territorial
Sea and the Contiguous Zone in 1958 (UNCLOS I),
4
codifying, among
others, the sovereign right of States parties over their "territorial sea," the
breadth of which, however, was left undetermined. Attempts to fill this void
during the second round of negotiations in Geneva in 1960 (UNCLOS II)
proved futile. Thus, domestically, RA 3046 remained unchanged for nearly
five decades, save for legislation passed in 1968 (Republic Act No. 5446
[RA 5446]) correcting typographical errors and reserving the drawing of
baselines around Sabah in North Borneo.
In March 2009, Congress amended RA 3046 by enacting RA 9522,
the statute now under scrutiny. The change was prompted by the need to
make RA 3046 compliant with the terms of the United Nations Convention
on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS III),
5
which the Philippines ratified on 27
February 1984.
6
Among others, UNCLOS III prescribes the water-land
ratio, length, and contour of baselines of archipelagic States like the
Philippines
7
and sets the deadline for the filing of application for the
extended continental shelf.