Philippines protests China Daily’s ‘dehumanizing’ portrayal of Filipinos

International

A MONKEY in a barong Tagalog and salakot became the center of a diplomatic row between Manila and Beijing after China Daily released a video that the Philippines condemned as a racist portrayal of its people.

The Philippine government has formally protested the state-run Chinese media outlet’s release of AI-generated videos and editorial cartoons depicting Filipinos as monkeys while criticizing the 2016 South China Sea Arbitral Award.

The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said Thursday that it demanded the removal of the video posted on China Daily’s Facebook account on July 10, two days before the 10th anniversary of the arbitral ruling.

The video showed a monkey dressed in traditional Filipino clothing being directed by arms representing the United States and Japan on what to say. It was later shown being blasted into the sea by a water cannon from a China Coast Guard ship.

The DFA said the material went beyond political criticism and called for its immediate removal, urging China to maintain dignity and respect in public discourse.

“The Philippines has consistently rejected false narratives and distortions regarding the Arbitral Award and the Philippines’ lawful positions in the South China Sea. But we draw a firm line at the depiction of Filipinos as monkeys in the 10 July 2026 video, which is deeply offensive, distressing and unacceptable,” the DFA said.

The Philippines first raised its objection to the material when Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Leo Herrera-Lim discussed the issue with Chinese Ambassador Jing Quan during a meeting on July 16. Herrera-Lim demanded that the content be taken down.

The DFA later filed a formal diplomatic protest, while the Philippine Embassy in Beijing sent a letter to China Daily’s editor-in-chief reiterating Manila’s demand for the removal of the materials.

Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro Jr. also criticized the video, saying its portrayal of Filipinos reflected poorly on China’s approach to the dispute.

“The post of China Daily depicting the Filipinos as monkeys is a revealing insight into what the Chinese communist apparatus thinks of the Filipino people,” Teodoro said in a Philstar report.

He added that China had resorted to racism and hostility instead of defending its South China Sea claims through reason, evidence, and law.

The National Security Council joined the DFA and the Department of National Defense in condemning the AI-generated content, saying it portrayed Filipinos through racist and dehumanizing imagery while promoting false narratives about the West Philippine Sea.

Philippine Coast Guard spokesman for the West Philippine Sea Rear Admiral Jay Tarriela said the China Daily video was not comparable to satire, citing its depiction of Filipinos as the reason it crossed a line.

“The one that I used was a satire… there’s no racist content on the slide that I used,” he said. “Obviously, this is a racist content. This is not just a satire… Racism has no place in society in this day and age.”

Tarriela also questioned Sen. Robinhood Padilla’s criticism that he had “drawn first blood” over a cartoon of Chinese President Xi Jinping that he previously shared, asking why there were no similar calls for an apology from China.

Lawmakers from both chambers of Congress also condemned the video, saying freedom of expression should not be used to justify racism or attacks on the dignity of a people. Sen. Francis Pangilinan described the material as “openly racist” and “deeply offensive,” while Sen. Juan Miguel Zubiri said it had crossed the line.(MyTVCebu)