S China Sea dispute sparks Manila protest

Protesters in the Philippines have condemned China's intrusions in the S China Sea and have pressed Beijing to respect a recent court ruling at The Hague.

Scores of Filipino and Vietnamese protesters have rallied outside the Chinese embassy in Makati City, south of Manila, as they called on China to respect a recent international ruling favouring the Philippines in the maritime dispute in the South China Sea, an epa journalist reports.

Around 100 Filipinos and 50 Vietnamese attended the joint protest rally on Saturday, singing the Philippines' national anthem and hanging Sampaguita flowers - the country's national flower - in front of the consular office, as they held placards and signs with messages like "We are united against China's aggression" and "We pray for peace, unity and rule of law".

The protesters condemned China's territorial intrusions into the disputed waters and urged Beijing to respect the July 12 ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) at The Hague.

China does not recognise the PCA verdict and has asked the Philippines and other neighbouring countries to resolve the conflict through bilateral talks instead of a US-brokered solution.

Aside from the Philippines and China, other countries with overlapping claims in parts of the South China Sea are Brunei, Malaysia, Vietnam and Taiwan.

China announced on July 28 that it would conduct joint military manoeuvres with Russia in September in the South China Sea, where the main point of conflict is the sovereignty of the Spratly and Paracel archipelagos.