“Who cares?”
This was how some Chinese netizens reacted to the arbitration ruling that favored the Philippines and rejected China’s “historic” claims to almost all of the disputed and resource-rich South China Sea.
In a music video compilation circulating online, Chinese people, particularly youngsters, said the phrase “South China Sea arbitration (in Chinese), who cares?” while facing the camera, with an upbeat music on the background.
Two Chinese girls in camouflage military clothing pulled out knives, all smiles, after saying the phrase.
Footages of China’s military activities and artificial islands were also included in the now viral clip.
The video, which was first uploaded by Beijing news site dooo.cc on its Weibo account, has been shared in multiple platforms.
It was also shared by the Defiant Chinese Communist Party Youth League in its social media accounts.
On Tuesday, the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague ruled that “there was no legal basis for China to claim historic rights to resources within the sea areas falling within the ‘nine-dash line,’” a vague demarcation found on a 1940s Chinese map.
Beijing rejected the decision as expected, calling it “null and void and has no binding force.” YG