South China Sea: Philippines’ David vs Goliath sovereignty struggle encapsulated – in tiny Thitu Island

Underdeveloped Thitu Island, or Pag-asa (hope), lies just 27km northeast of a military base built by China that’s estimated to be 12 times its size

Still, Manila is determined to maintain a civilian and military presence, and is planning to pour billions of pesos into upgrading the remote outpost

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Thitu Island, known in the Philippines as Pag-asa, as seen from a Philippine Air Force plane in 2000. Even decades later, much of the island is still unpaved, with phone and internet signals hard to come by. Photo: AP

Published: 10:05am, 8 Apr 2024

A tiny island in the South China Sea symbolises the struggle – and disparity – in the Philippines’ efforts to assert its rights in disputed waters when compared to China, which claims much of the waterway.

Manila is rushing to develop the 33-hectare (82-acre) Thitu Island, with the government planning to pour in billions of pesos to upgrade it. Just over 200 civilians and military personnel currently live there.

Buildings and other structures are seen in 2022 on the artificial island built by China on Subi Reef, some 27km southwest of Thitu Island. Photo: Getty Images/TNS

But some 27km (17 miles) southwest of the island, China has built a fully functioning military base on Subi Reef that is estimated to be 12 times the size of Thitu.

That base is just one of Beijing’s 27 outposts in the South China Sea equipped with ports, runways and other infrastructure aimed at asserting its sweeping claims in the key waterway.

By contrast, Manila occupies nine features that have few facilities or structures. Malaysia, Vietnam and Taiwan also have a presence in the area, and overlapping territorial claims.

This disparity explains, in part, the Philippines’ recent urgency in bolstering its defence alliances, most notably with the United States.