1st LD-Writethru: Taiwan authorities dismiss South China Sea arbitration award

Taiwan said Tuesday it "absolutely will not accept" the decision in the South China Sea arbitration.

The island's leader's office said that the award "is not legally binding."

The award, especially its claim that Taiping Island is a rock, seriously damages the rights to the island and surrounding waters, it said. The territory and sovereignty must be protected, it added.

The Kuomintang party in Taiwan said it will not accept the arbitration award, saying it was an out-and-out lie, particularly in denying the island status of Taiping where there is fresh water, chickens are raised and vegetables are cultivated.

Taiwan scholars said the award was absurd and that neither side of the Taiwan Strait would accept it.

"The award is totally nonsense and malicious, a result of political manoeuvreing," said Chang Ya-chung, a political professor at Taiwan University.

The result will inevitably cause tension, he said.

The award is not legally binding as the tribunal has actually no jurisdiction over the disputes, said Gau Sheng-ti, professor in public international law at the Law of the Sea Institute at Taiwan's Ocean University.

In terms of Taiping Island, Philippine scholars, lawyers and members of the tribunal have never visited the island, how can they overturn a research report made by scholars who visited it, Gau questioned. Endi