MANILA, Philippines—For diplomatic and security considerations, the Senate has decided to go slow on its proposed inquiry into the Joint Marine Seismic Undertaking (JMSU) among the Philippines, China and Vietnam in the contested Spratly Islands in the South China Sea.

Senators on Monday agreed among themselves to refer the various proposals to investigate the seismic exploration deal to the Senate committee on rules, which would decide which committee should rightly handle the inquiry.

Senate President Manuel Villar said the Spratlys resolutions were referred to the rules committee first “so there will be no overlap.”

The rules committee handles questions on the Senate's internal rules. Chaired by the Senate majority leader, Sen. Francis Pangilinan, it will discuss whether the JMSU inquiry would be assigned to the blue ribbon committee under Sen. Alan Cayetano, the defense committee under Sen. Rodolfo Biazon or the foreign relations committee under Sen. Miriam Santiago.

Four senators have filed separate resolutions related to the joint survey for potential oil and gas resources in areas claimed entirely or in part by the Philippines, China, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan.

The resolutions by opposition Senators Antonio Trillanes IV, who is under detention and facing court-martial for allegedly plotting a coup, Panfilo Lacson and Maria Ana Consuelo “Jamby” Madrigal call for an investigation of the Arroyo administration for “treason” because the JSMU may have compromised the country's claim to the Spratlys.

The resolution of Santiago, a pro-administration senator, seeks to create a joint congressional body to establish the country's boundaries.

Sen. Joker Arroyo said the blue ribbon committee, which is investigating the National Broadband Network (NBN) deal, is already swamped with work, and pointed out that the subject touches on foreign relations.

“We can't be investigating and investigating as if we were investigating an internal matter,” Arroyo said.

Cayetano, who heads the blue ribbon committee, said he had no objection to referring the inquiry to the committee on rules in the meantime “because we have to be careful.”

Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile, a former defense minister, said the Senate should also define the scope of the inquiry, “so we will not go astray, otherwise we might cause a diplomatic faux pas.”

“Why should we consider a security problem involving this agreement when we have diplomatic relations with all these countries? They are all friendly countries,” he added.

Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel Jr. said that if a preliminary assessment of the MOU (memorandum of undertaking) showed that the agreement focused on the seas around the Spratlys, it would not pose a problem for us.”

“But the annex shows the scope reaches as far as the seas of Palawan. That would create an instant reaction among our people, or concern (about the) security aspect,” he said.

Pimentel said he joined President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo's visit to Beijing when the first Philippine-China JSMU agreement was signed on Sept. 1, 2004. Six months later, Vietnam joined the undertaking.

“I was only told this had to do with trying to defuse the situation in the Spratlys so that hindi na magkaputukan (we don't have a shooting war),” said Pimentel, who stressed he did not witness the signing.