THE Palace is to be commended for protesting China’s naming of five features in the Philippine Rise, also known as Benham Rise. First is the revision of the President’s clear order to stop all foreign research at Benham Rise, as announced by Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Piñol. As Batongbacal explains: “Benham Rise was discovered and named in 1933 during the Philippine Commonwealth Period when [the Philippines]was under US sovereignty. Benham Rise is thought to be named after [US Navy Admiral] Andrew Ellicot Kennedy Benham (1832-1905).”“We did not claim [exclusive economic zone]jurisdiction over [Benham Rise] until 1978 through [Presidential Decree] 1596. We did not claim jurisdiction over the continental shelf beyond 200 [nautical miles]until 2009, which was validated in 2012.

Source: Manila Times February 17, 2018 16:18 UTC