MANILA - The Philippines said Friday it has formally protested a China Daily animated video depicting a Filipino as a monkey and as subservient to the United States and Japan over an international arbitral ruling on the South China Sea, calling for its immediate takedown.
"China Daily went beyond legitimate political debate by resorting to demeaning, dehumanizing, and racist depiction of Filipinos," the Philippines' Department of Foreign Affairs said of the nearly-a-minute video posted by the state-run Chinese newspaper last week on Facebook.
The animation depicts a monkey in traditional Filipino clothing being prodded by arms representing the United States and Japan into singing about the 2016 ruling that invalidated China's sweeping sovereignty claims in the sea, before being blasted with water cannons by a vessel resembling a China Coast Guard ship.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian, who was asked about the post during a press conference Friday, said the video "does not represent the official position so I will not comment on it."
But he emphasized China's position on the ruling and said, "The South China Sea arbitration was a political farce disguised as a legal proceeding."
The Philippines last week commemorated the 10th anniversary of the landmark ruling, which fell on Sunday, by holding forums attended by diplomats from countries backing the tribunal's decision, as well as other events. The country, the United States, Japan and 11 other nations released a statement reaffirming the ruling on the anniversary.
China has rejected the ruling by a tribunal at the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague and continues to deploy assets inside the Philippines' exclusive economic zone.
"The mockery of the lawful 2016 Arbitral Award and the video's glorification of violence against the Filipino people and soldiers expose the moral and intellectual bankruptcy of China's propaganda machine," Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro said late Thursday.
