Manila: The inaugural Balangay Forum is a good avenue where Filipinos can help each other in times of trouble in the country's maritime domain, Department of National Defense (DND) Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. said on Monday. "I hope that this forum is also a venue for not only the maritime interests per se as a point of defining which is what and to whom these things belong, but to defining how we can help each other in cases of dangers posed by the maritime domain, tsunamis, typhoons, disasters or collisions at sea, and the like," Teodoro said in his message during the event at Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City. The forum titled "Safeguarding Philippine Maritime Interests" is part of this year's Maritime Archipelagic Nation Awareness Month (MANAMo) celebrations. Presidential Proclamation 316 signed in 2017 declared the month of September as MANAMo, encouraging all government agencies and the private sector to implement programs and activities that seek to raise awareness and consciousness on maritime and arc hipelagic issues and concerns. "I think this is a very, very important forum, the Coast Guard is here for discussing ways and means of how states should be given free right to cooperate when it involves saving lives without any inference or any inference or presumption of abandonment of one's rights or sovereign jurisdiction," Teodoro said. He said all efforts must be devoted to ensuring that all Filipinos are aware of efforts to protect the country's maritime resources. "I think we should all devote ourselves to raising awareness amongst our people of the stakes involved if we do not actively develop and protect our maritime resources and the foundation of which are our international law entitlements," he said. He, meanwhile, said awareness must be converted into action. "We have in our circles some understanding of where we need to go depending on our disciplines. However, what is lacking is the collective political will to pursue a path towards securing these maritime assets given the fact that those who feel the need in the body politic are those who live in coastal areas. And a lot of Filipinos still live in landlocked areas," he added. While noting Filipinos' awareness on the West Philippine Sea (WPS) issue amid ongoing tensions with China, Teodoro said this is "only a small portion of our maritime domain". "It will need a lot of convergence between the private sector, our government, and our international partners to protect the other areas in a sustainable and legal way for the benefit of our future generations," he added. Source: Philippines News Agency