Beijing slams Senate adoption of 'anti-China' resolution, calls it 'political stunt'

The Chinese Embassy in Manila on Tuesday pushed back on the Senate for adopting a so-called “anti-China” resolution, calling it a “political stunt” aimed at “stirring up hatred and confrontation.”

“What they’ve done is for their own political interest. Such behavior only disgraces themselves. However, the price of their hypocrisy, ignorance, and recklessness is paid by the ordinary people,” the embassy’s spokesperson Ji Lingpeng asserted.

“No matter how many anti-China resolutions these people introduce, whether it’s 10 or even 100, it will not in the slightest weaken the Chinese embassy’s resolve to fight the malicious moves against China to the very end. Not a chance,” he continued.

Ji’s inflammatory statement came a day after the adoption of Senate Resolution 256, which denounced Beijing’s indecent remarks against senators and other key government officials, like Philippine Coast Guard spokesperson for the WPS, Jay Tarriela, who are critical of China’s continued assertion of maritime rights in the West Philippine Sea.

Ji accused some Philippine legislators of “repeatedly resorting to threats and intimidation” against Chinese diplomats, and that they “twist facts and mislead the public.

The Chinese official also mocked the senators supportive of the resolution as ignorant of how diplomacy works, yet brazen enough to sabotage efforts to improve China–Philippines relations.

Senate President Tito Sotto, however, was quick to fire back at Ji, denouncing his scathing remarks as a veiled attempt to “silence” the Senate. He also suggested that Ji is being hypocritical for demanding respect while continue disrecpecting members of the chamber by calling them “hypocrites and ignorant.”

“He is claiming that we are intimidating Chinese diplomats, yet he continues to speak disrespectfully against us and call[s] the Senate resolution a mere political stunt,” Sotto lamented.

“I can say the same thing to him that he knows little about how diplomacy works. Respect begets respect,” the Senate leader added.

The embassy has been embroiled in a rhetorical duel with Philippine officials, particularly with senators and Tarriela, since January.

The sharp exchanges followed the embassy’s filing of two diplomatic protests, compelling the Philippines to stop “turning a blind eye” and “tolerating” Tarriela from orchestrating a “smear campaign” against President Xi Jingping.

The embassy specifically took offense with Tarriela’s Facebook post featuring a caricature of Xi with the title “Why China remains to be bully?” during a forum at De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde earlier in January.

The embassy had argued that although Tarriela’s “malicious” social media posts against China have been a recurring issue, the particular post constituted a “blatant political provocation” that had “crossed the red line.”

Tarriela, in response, had asserted that China’s protests were a veiled effort to “deflect” the issue from their relentless “aggressive and illegal actions” in the WPS.

He also retaliated with an accusation, arguing that China’s seeking intervention of the Philippine government over his “personal and professional” views in the WPS is in violation of Article 41(1) of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties.

The provision explicitly stipulates that state parties to the treaty are bound not to interfere in the internal affairs of the host state. Both the Philippines and China are parties to the Vienna Convention.

Ji on Tuesday justified their actions, contending that no country would just stay silent in the face of insults against its leaders.

“When it comes to this kind of noise, there are two ways to deal with it. One is to say a firm, loud, and clear “no”, without hesitation, to condemn it and reject it outright. The other is to keep advancing China–Philippines cooperation and exchanges, strengthen understanding and mutual trust, and make those who create the noise irrelevant and unwelcome. We choose both,” Ji stressed.

Senators have remained unfazed and vowed not to back down with China.

The Department of Foreign Affairs earlier affirmed support with Philippine officials and government institutions performing their lawful duties in defense of Philippine sovereignty, sovereign rights, and jurisdiction.

The Philippines and China have long been embroiled in a maritime dispute over the South China Sea, which overlaps with the WPS.

China has persistently asserted jurisdiction over WPS, notwithstanding a 2016 arbitral ruling, which deemed Beijing’s expansive claims in the entire SCS as invalid and baseless.