Section 13Sec./Art. 13

Obligations in the Exercise of the Right of Archipelagic Sea Lanes Passage. - In the exercise of the right of archipelagic sea lanes passage, the following obligations must be complied with:

(a) Foreign ships and aircraft shall pass through or above the archipelagic sea lanes as quickly as possible without delay and in the normal mode solely for the purpose of continuous, expeditious, and unobstructed transit;

(b) Foreign ships and aircraft shall not deviate more than twenty-five (25) nautical miles on either side of such axis lines during the passage: Provided, That such ships and aircraft shall not navigate closer to the coasts than ten percent (10%) of the distance between the nearest points on islands bordering the sea lane: Provided, further, That aircraft shall not traverse over or through the airspace of any island or land territory of the Philippines, even if located within twenty-five (25) nautical miles of the axis lines;

(c) Foreign aircraft shall not land on Philippine territory except when rendered necessary by force majeure or distress;

(d) Foreign ships shall refrain from stopping, dropping anchor, or loitering, except when rendered necessary by force majeure, distress, or to render assistance to persons, ships, or aircraft in danger or distress: Provided, That vessels anchoring on account of force majeure or to render assistance to persons, ships, or aircraft in danger or distress may be subject to boarding and inspection by Philippine govenrment vessels;

(e) Foreign ships or aircraft shall refrain from any activity other than those incidental to continuous, expeditious and unobstructed transit through the archipelagic sea lanes, nor shall they deviate more than twenty-five (25) nautical miles from the axis of the archipelagic sea lanes, unless rendered necessary by force majeure or distress, in which case such shall be subject to Philippine approval, when appropriate;

(f) Foreign ships or aircraft shall refrain from making covert transmissions, interfering with telecommunications systems, and communicating directly with unauthorized persons or group of persons in Philippine territory;

(g) Foreign ships or aircraft shall keep their automatic identification systems (AIS), transponders, or other means of identification and communication turned on throughout their passage through Philippine archipelagic waters and shall duly respond to communications from the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG), the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP), and other agencies of the Government of the Republic of the Philippines; and

(h) Foreign nuclear-powered ships and ships carrying inherently dangerous or noxious substances shall carry documents and observe special precautionary measures established for such ships by applicable international conventions or agreements when traversing the Philippine archipelagic waters in the exercise of archipelagic sea lanes passage or innocent passage: Provided, That in the exercise of said rights, the declared policy in the second paragraph of Section 2 is observed and complied with.