The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) has filed an official diplomatic protest against state-run media outlet China Daily for releasing editorial cartoons and videos that reportedly utilized racist depictions of Filipinos.
Demanding the prompt deletion of the offensive content, the DFA emphasized that such publications violate the fundamental respect required in international relations.
According to a statement released on Friday, July 17, the Philippine government initiated its objections on July 16, when Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Leo Herrera-Lim directly confronted Chinese Ambassador Jing Quan during a meeting.
Throughout their talk, Herrera-Lim pressured the state-owned media company to delete the controversial content, warning that the materials undermine ongoing initiatives designed to maintain “the sound and stable management of bilateral relations” between Manila and Beijing.
The DFA clarified that its formal grievance targets commentary videos and editorial cartoons focused on the 2016 South China Sea Arbitral Award, highlighting an AI-generated video shared on China Daily’s social media page on July 10.
The agency asserted that the news organization moved past the boundaries of permissible political commentary by engaging in “demeaning, dehumanizing, and racist depictions of Filipinos.”
While the department noted that the Philippines has consistently challenged misleading claims and distortions regarding the historic arbitration and Manila’s territorial rights in the South China Sea, it stressed that geopolitical and legal disputes do not excuse the utilization of derogatory imagery, which has no role in responsible global discourse.
Furthermore, the DFA cautioned that the offensive material threatens to worsen the existing distrust between the two countries, calling on China to prioritize dignity, truth, and mutual respect in public narratives.
The department also disclosed that the Philippine Embassy in Beijing dispatched a separate formal communication to the editor-in-chief of China Daily to reinforce the demand for the content’s immediate deletion.
This diplomatic action follows a prior rebuke from the DFA against China Daily for publishing AI-generated clips and political caricatures that represented Filipinos as monkeys to mark the 10th anniversary of the 2016 South China Sea Arbitral Award. The agency condemned the media campaign as “deeply offensive, distressing, and unacceptable.”
Defense Secretary Gilberto “Gibo” Teodoro Jr. similarly lambasted the video, labeling it as racist propaganda that reveals “what the Chinese communist apparatus thinks of the Filipino people” and highlights the “moral and intellectual bankruptcy of China’s propaganda machine.”
Echoing this stance, Rear Admiral Jay Tarriela, the Philippine Coast Guard’s spokesperson for West Philippine Sea affairs, denounced the publication by declaring that racism is intolerable in contemporary society and affirming that “Filipinos are not monkeys.”
The diplomatic friction unfolded just days after the Philippines and its global allies marked a decade since the July 12, 2016 arbitral decision invalidated Beijing’s sweeping territorial claims in the South China Sea. Though Beijing dismisses the landmark verdict, Manila upholds it as conclusive and legally binding.
The DFA concluded by reiterating its dedication to addressing bilateral tensions through diplomatic channels and dialogue, though it maintained that it “will not hesitate to call out discriminatory and offensive rhetoric wherever it appears.”