FOURTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE ) 
First Regular Session 
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REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
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S E N A T E  
S. NO. 
Introduced by Senator Antonio F. Trillanes 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
Article I of the 1987 Constitution declares that the Philippines is an 
archipelagic state and defines our national territory as comprising “the Philippine 
archipelago, with all the islands and waters embraced therein, and all other 
territories over which the Philippines has sovereignty or jurisdiction. ..” However, 
the said Constitution failed to delineate the boundaries of the Philippine 
archipelago. 
The Kalayaan Island Group (KIG) consisting of about seventy-five islands, 
cave, shoals, and bank reefs with a total area of 68,807.85 nautical square miles, 
is considered as an integral part of the Philippines by historic right and legal title. 
Thus, the late President Marcos declared in 1978 through Presidential Decree 
No. 1596 that the Kalayaan island Group (KIG) is part of the continental margin 
of the Philippine archipelago. The said declaration together with an 
accompanying technical description of the area was registered with the United 
Nations Secretariat on June 18, 1980. Likewise, the Kalayaan Island Group is 
considered an integral part of the Philippine archipelago by occupation and 
exercises of jurisdiction because Filipino citizens have peacefully established 
their domicile on the islands and is part of the political subdivision of the province 
of Palawan. 
The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), which 
entered into force on November 14, 1994, recognized in Article 46 thereof that 
“an archipelagic state is a group of islands including parts of islands, 
interconnecting waters and other natural features which are so closely 
interrelated that such islands, waters and other natural features form an intrinsic 
geographical, economic and political entity, or which historically have been 
regarded as such”. Likewise, under the UNCLOS, an archipelagic state is 
allowed to draw straight baselines joining the outermost points of the outer 
islands and drying reefs. 
In 1961, Republic Act 3046, as amended by Republic Act No. 5446 in 
1968, was enacted to establish the Philippine Baselines Law. Since it was 
enacted long before the effectivity of the UNCLOS and the recognition of the 
archipelagic doctrine, the Kalayaan Island group was necessarily not yet 
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included. P. D. No. 1596 likewise failed to include and integrate the boundaries of 
the Kalayaan Island Group with those provided in R. A. No. 3046 as amended by 
R. A. No. 5446. 
This representation believes that to avert any future unnecessary dispute 
with foreign states, an adaptation in toto of House Bill No. 1202 filed by Rep. 
Antonio Cuenco is essential. It seeks to amend R. A. No. 3046 as amended by 
R. A. No. 5446 by drawing straight baselines on the outermost points of 
Scarborough Shoal and joining them with the baselines defined under R. A. No. 
3046, as amended, as well as to include the KIG as regime of islands, with some 
amendments to conform with the criteria set under Article 47 of the Convention 
on the Law of the Sea. 
The establishment of new baseline laws of the Philippines is necessary as 
it shall serve as basis from which to draw the 12 mile territorial sea, the 24 mile 
contiguous zone and the 200 mile Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) as provided 
under the UNCLOS. Likewise, the same shall also serve as the official 
notification to all States on the extent of the limits of the maritime zone of the 
Philippine archipelago and thus avert any unnecessary dispute with vessels of 
foreign states entering Philippine maritime territory without our permission. 
In view of the foregoing reasons, the immediate enactment of this bill is 
urgently sought. 
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AN ON10 F. TRILLANES IV 
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FOURTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE 
) 
First Regular Session 
) 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
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SENATE 
Introduced by Senator Antonio F. Trillanes 
AN ACT 
DEFINING THE 
ARCHIPELAGIC 
BASELINES OF THE 
PHILIPPINE 
ARCHIPELAGO, AMENDING FOR THE PURPOSE REPUBLIC ACT NO. 3046, 
AS AMENDED BY REPUBLIC ACT NO. 5446. 
Be if enacted by the House of Representatives and the Senate of the 
Philippines in Congress assembled. 
Section 1. Short Title. This act shall be known as the "Archipelagic 
Baselines Law of the Philippines". 
Sec. 2. Declaration of Policy. The Philippines is an archipelagic state 
and its national territory comprises the Philippine archipelago, with all the islands 
and waters embraced therein, and all other territories over which the Philippines 
has sovereignty or jurisdiction, consisting of its terrestrial, fluvial, and aerial 
domains, including its territorial sea, the seabed, the subsoil, the insular shelves, 
and other submarine areas. The waters around, between, and connecting the 
islands of the archipelago, regardless of their breadth and dimensions, form part 
of the internal waters of the Philippines. 
Sec. 3. Archipelagic Baselines. The geographical coordinates of the 
location basepoints of the archipelagic baselines of the Philippines are hereby 
defined and prescribed as follows: 
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$1 
t2 
t3 
$4 
15 
t6 
PROPOSED PHILIPPINE ARCHIPELAGIC BASELINES 


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LO 
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!O 
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!2 
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!4 
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30 
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$2 
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126" 11' 34.95" 


116" 59' 57.30" 
116" 57'53.58 
11 6' 53' 28.73" 
116" 53' 16.64 
116" 54 10.04" 
117" 0 56.16' 
117" 15'51.23" 
117" 21'34.89 
117" 28 15.78 
117" 37' 38.88" 
118" 36' 53.61" 
11 8" 45' 53.07" 
118" 48 22.10 
11 8" 48 31.78 
119" 13' 26.37'' 
119" 14' 3.55 
119" 15' 17.74 
-. . 
.- -. . 
.. . - 
11 9" 15' 48.94' 
11 9" 5 0  56.00 
120" 1' 5.86" 
120" 0' 22.79 
119" 51' 52.07" 
117" 49 5.49 
117"48 5.18' 
117" 46' 45.72" 
117" 42' 46.88' 
117" 44' 17.03 
117" 50' 48.63" 
119" 46' 56.09" 
11 9" 45' 43.71" 
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19" 44' 55.32' 
119" 45' 15 7 6  
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119" 45' 11.95 
119"46 19.50' 
119" 46' 28.52' 
11 9" 46 44.94 
119" 46 59.55" 
11 9" 47' 7.69" 
119"47'10.76" 
120" 20' 33.36 
2.34 
5.07 
2.27 
7.42 
11 2 8  
30.52 
8.86 
10.94 
13.20 
81.12 
13.31 
3.30 
0.21 
60.34 
1.54 
4.95 
0.58 
74.16 
93.88 
61.24 
31.65 
120.23' 
0.97 
1.31 
6.9 
1.77 
8.22 
119.24* 
7.29 
205.00 
12.06 
0.25 
6.43 
0.65 
1.30 
0.73 
0.31 
71 .OO 
80.56 
6.86 
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I4 *-Long baseline ( 100 to 125 nm). Total is 4 which is less than 3% of the total number of basepointsl baselines 
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Sec. 4. Other Territories Beyond the Archipelagic Baselines. The 
Kalayaan Island Group (KIG), as defined under Presidential Decree 1596, shall 
have a territorial sea and contiguous exclusive econominc zone measured from 
the noma1 baseline. 
Sec. 5. Without Prejudice Clause. The delineation of baselines as 
provided in this Act shall be without prejudice to any claims to any contested 
portions of the national territory or maritime zones and jurisdictions of the 
Philippines, in accordance with international law and under appropriate 
international disDute resolution mechanisms. 
Sec. 6. Vested Rights. The delineation of baselines as provided in this 
Act shall be without prejudice to vested rights existing or being claimed by virtue 
of Republic Act No. 7160 (otherwise known as the Local Government Code of 
1991, as Amended) and other laws which give rise to local government 
allotments and shares in the income generated from natural resources within the 
national territory as delineated prior to this Act. 
Sec. 7. Registration with the United Nations. This Act, together with the 
geographic coordinates and the charts and maps indicating the aforesaid 
baselines, shall be deposited and registered with the Secretary General of the 
United Nations. 
Sec. 8. issuance of Appropriate Charts and Maps. The National 
Mapping and Resource Information Authority (NAMRIA) shall forthwith produce 
and publish charts and maps of the appropriate scale clearly representing the 
delineation of basepoints and baselines as set forth in this Act. 
Sec. 9. Appropriations. The amount necessary to carry out the 
provisions of this Act shall be provided in a supplemental budget or included in 
the General Appropriations Act of the Year of its enactment into law. 
Sec. I O .  Repealing Clause. Republic Act No. 3046 as amended by 
Republic Act No. 5446 and all other laws, decrees, executive orders, rules and 
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issuances inconsistent with this Act are hereby repealed, amended or modified 
accordingly. 
Sec. 11. Separability Clause. If any portion or provision of this Act is 
declared unconstitutional or invalid, the other portions or provisions hereof which 
are not affected thereby shall continue to be in full force and effect. 
Sec. 12. Effectivity Clause. This Act shall take effect fifteen days 
following its publication in the Official Gazette or in any two newspapers of 
general circulation in the Philippines. 
Approved, 
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