By Brian Campued
The Philippine government has strongly condemned state-run China Daily for releasing an AI-generated video depicting Filipinos as monkeys, along with other op-ed videos and editorial cartoons on the 2016 South China Sea Arbitral Award.
In a statement Friday, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said it has formally lodged a diplomatic protest condemning the content, noting that the state-owned outlet “went beyond legitimate political debate by resorting to demeaning, dehumanizing, and racist depictions of Filipinos.”
The Philippine Embassy in Beijing also issued an open letter to China Daily, saying that its conduct goes beyond legitimate political debate and breaches editorial norms and principles,
Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Leo Herrera-Lim first conveyed Manila’s objection to the video, which was posted on China Daily’s Facebook page on July 10, during a face-to-face meeting with Chinese Ambassador Jing Quan on Thursday.
According to the DFA, Herrera-Lim demanded that the materials be taken down, stressing that such content is “inconsistent with the mutual respect expected between states and does no favors to the sound and stable management of bilateral relations.”
“The protest underscored that while the Philippines has consistently rejected false narratives and distortions regarding the Arbitral Award and its lawful positions in the South China Sea, disagreement over legal and political issues does not justify resorting to imagery that has no place in the public discourse of responsible states,” the agency said.
“It reiterated the call for the material’s immediate takedown, warned that such content only widens distrust between the two countries, and urged China to uphold dignity, respect, and truth in its public discourse,” it added.
Department of National Defense (DND) Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. also slammed what he called China’s “mockery of the 2016 Arbitral Award” and the “glorification of violence” against Filipinos to defend their “ridiculous claims” in the South China Sea.
“Such contemptible propaganda is a disgrace to any State that claims to exercise responsible regional leadership. It reveals the weakness of a government that resorts to racism, threats, and manufactured hatred because it has utterly failed to defend its ridiculous claims through reason, evidence, or law,” Sec. Teodoro said in a statement Thursday night.
Teodoro said China’s actions justify the DND’s policy of no ministerial or Armed Forces of the Philippines defense engagements or contacts with the Chinese Communist Party or any of its agencies.
“The recent spate of schizophrenic behavior of the Chinese Communist Party is too clear to disregard or to ignore. This latest act of dehumanization further reveals them as neither a secure and confident actor nor a trustworthy neighbor,” he said.
Meanwhile, Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) Spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea, RAdm. Jay Tarriela urged Filipinos to unite in condemning China’s behavior, stressing that racism has no place in society.
“Para sa akin dapat i-call out ‘to at hindi dapat ito pinapalagpas,” Tarriela said. “This kind of racist behavior of the People’s Republic of China should be called out by our government.” (with reports from Gab Humilde Villegas, Patrick de Jesus, and JM Thompson / PTV News)
-jpv
