ANGARA: CARTOGRAPHY KEY TO TERRITORIAL ISSUES

Senator Edgardo Angara said cartography holds the solution to the territorial disputes the Philippines is facing.

"Our quarrels with other nations over contested areas can be resolved through cartography, specifically ancient maps that show the full extent of our territory," said Angara during the launch of an exhibit of Philippine maps at the Metropolitan Museum of Manila on Tuesday.

Dubbed as the "Three Hundred Years of Philippine Maps: 1598-1898," the exhibit features 134 original maps dating from the Spanish colonial period to early American times.

The Philippine Map Collectors Society and the Embassy of Spain in the Philippines organized the exhibit in celebration of the Philippine-Spanish Friendship Day on June 30.

The senator, who owns a vast collection of historical maps, contributed seven to the exhibit, including an old map showing that the disputed Scarborough (Panatag) Shoal belongs to the Philippines.

"Despite the rarity of archival maps due to the digitalized format of documentation, these maps continue to acquire contemporary relevance," Angara said. "They should be utilized as reference and proof of our ownership."

The Philippines is currently in a row with China and other Asian countries claiming ownership of the Scarborough Shoal and Spratly Group of Islands in the West Philippine Sea.

"Our diplomats should look into such archival maps to find the answers to these disagreements over territories," he said.

The exhibit of Philippine maps will be open to the public until July 31.