The Chinese Embassy in Manila pushed back against Philippine lawmakers this week, claiming that “certain” senators have a history of being “disrespectful” toward Chinese officials, following Senate President Vicente Sotto III’s remarks condemning the embassy’s recent statements.
Sotto earlier criticized Ji Lingpeng, spokesperson of the Chinese Embassy in the Philippines, after the latter allegedly reacted to a Senate resolution that denounced the remarks of Chinese officials against Philippine authorities in connection with the West Philippine Sea issue. Sotto said the embassy appeared to be attempting to silence the Senate by “calling [them] hypocrites and ignorant.”
In a statement posted on the Chinese Embassy’s official Facebook page on Wednesday night, the spokesperson recalled a past incident in which a Philippine senator reportedly told Chinese diplomats to “Get the f*ck out!” during a Senate plenary session.
The embassy was referring to Sen. Erwin Tulfo’s speech defending the Senate resolution, where Tulfo told Chinese officials they could leave the Philippines if they refuse to respect Filipinos’ freedom of speech.
The Chinese Embassy also questioned senators who, it said, have repeatedly criticized China using harsh labels.
“You also say we are disrespectful. Yet some senators labelled China as bully, called the Chinese Embassy a ‘bad guest’ or a ‘troll farm.’ Is that what you call respect?” the embassy wrote.
It further rejected allegations that it was attempting to suppress Senate discussions, claiming instead that some senators have been the ones pressuring and threatening Chinese diplomats.
“You keep claiming that the Chinese Embassy is trying to silence senators or the Senate. No one wants to silence you, and no one should be silenced. The reality is that certain senators have been repeatedly threatening and intimidating foreign embassy, even proposing to declare Chinese diplomats ‘persona non grata.’ So who is trying to silence the other side?” it added.
While the embassy described itself as a “bridge” supporting friendly ties and exchanges between China and the Philippines, it said it would not tolerate what it called “baseless attacks and smears.”
“If falsehoods are spread, if China is maliciously vilified, if hatred is incited, we will not stay silent. We will respond firmly and without hesitation. This is a right granted under the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and a core duty of any Chinese embassy,” it said.
The embassy also warned that political pressure through resolutions, public statements, and what it described as “endless” complaints would not be effective.
“That approach simply does not work. Those who seek to incite hatred and sabotage China–Philippines relations will not succeed, because we’re watching closely, and will debunk every lie and scheme whenever they arise.”
Asked for his reaction to the embassy’s latest statement, Sotto responded: “When someone triggers you to react and you do not, it’s annoying! I prefer to be annoying!”
The diplomatic exchange comes as the Chinese embassy earlier announced that it is banning officials of Kalayaan town in Palawan from entering China, including Hong Kong and Macao, after the local government declared Chinese Ambassador Jing Quan persona non grata within its municipal jurisdiction.
