Opposition solons demand strong response to China's remarks on PH officials

Opposition lawmakers in the House of Representatives on Tuesday urged President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to take stronger actions amid recent remarks of Chinese Embassy officials against Filipino government officials who criticized Beijing’s aggressive actions in the disputed South China Sea.

Led by House Deputy Minority Leaders Leila de Lima of ML Party-list and Chel Diokno of Akbayan Party-list, the opposition solons made the call under House Resolution 680 filed on Tuesday.

The measure referred to the comments made by Chinese Embassy deputy spokesperson Guo Wei that disputed the Philippines’ positions on navigation rights, archipelagic sea lanes passage, the scope of exclusive economic zone entitlements, and the legal validity of the 2016 arbitral award.

The Chinese Embassy’s recent remarks labelled statements made by several lawmakers on maritime and regional security issues as mere “echoes” that do not make their claims true.

The House measure called on the Marcos administration to consider future appropriate actions, such as the filing of diplomatic protests, summoning the Chinese ambassador, and declaring persona non grata any embassy spokesperson or foreign diplomat engaged in improper conduct.

“These measures are meant to assert diplomatic norms, the principle of non-interference, Philippine sovereignty and territorial integrity in response to recent remarks by the Chinese Embassy that are directed against government officials,” the resolution read.

The opposition lawmakers noted that the Chinese Embassy has “repeatedly issued public statements and social media posts directed at Philippine officials that employ discourteous, disparaging, and inflammatory language.”

These include “personal attacks on the competence and integrity of Philippine public servants, insinuations that they are ‘embarrassing’ themselves, and threats couched as warnings to ‘stop or pay the price,’ which go beyond legitimate articulation of a foreign State’s position and constitute an unacceptable departure from the restraint, civility, and mutual respect expected of diplomatic missions.”

“Instead of confining its concerns to established diplomatic channels, the Embassy has increasingly used public platforms to admonish and intimidate Philippine officials and institutions, to delegitimize lawful transparency initiatives, and to shape domestic public discourse through rhetoric that undermines Philippine sovereignty and the dignity of national institutions, thereby creating a chilling effect on the performance of official duties and normalizing foreign pressure within Philippine territory,” the resolution said.

It added that the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) should take stronger and proactive diplomatic actions, both bilaterally and in appropriate international and regional fora, to firmly uphold the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, and the Philippines’ sovereign rights and national dignity. 

“The consistent and principled defense of Philippine sovereignty, sovereign rights, and maritime entitlements, particularly in the WPS, is a matter of paramount and transcendental national interest,” the resolution said.

“The DFA should consistently uphold the primacy of established diplomatic channels in addressing bilateral disputes and concerns, and to take appropriate steps – including issuing formal summons to the Chinese Ambassador – to prevent the normalization of inappropriate and undiplomatic statements and actions of embassy officials that may be construed as interference in the internal affairs of the receiving State,” it added.

Although the DFA already issued a statement on the incident, de Lima said this position is insufficient. The DFA earlier lodged a diplomatic protest on the issue.

“Dapat mas malakas at mas matapang pa ang dapat tugon dito ng gobyerno. Tulad ng pagtatanggol natin sa West Philippine Sea (WPS), dapat lang na pumalag tayo at ipagtanggol din ang ating mga opisyal na dinedepensahan lang kung ano ang totoo at ano ang nararapat sa dignidad ng ating bansa,” de Lima, a former justice secretary, said.

(The government should have a stronger and fiercer response to this. Just like how we defend the West Philippine Sea, we should call out these Chinese officials and defend our government officials who stand for our rights and dignity.)

She added: “Wala silang karapatan na laitin, insultuhin at bastusin ang ating mga opisyal. Hindi naman pwedeng habang nagpapakalat sila ng kasinungalingan tungkol sa atin, ay mananahimik lang tayo.”

(They do not have the right to disparage, insult and disrespect our government officials. We cannot be silent while they spread lies against us.)

Other signatories of House Resolution 680 are other members of the Liberal Party (LP).

They are: Reps. Edgar Erice (2nd District, Caloocan City), Adrian Michael Amatong (3rd District, Zamboanga del Norte), Arlene “Kaka” Bag-ao (Lone District, Dinagat Islands), Jaime Fresnedi (Lone District, Muntinlupa City), Cielo Krisel Lagman (1st District, Albay), and Alfonso Umali Jr. (2nd District, Oriental Mindoro).

Diokno and Akbayan Reps. Percival Cendaña and Dadah Kiram Ismula also signed the measure. — JMA, GMA Integrated News