BY ADRIAN STEWART CO and DARYL LASAFIN
MANILA – Filipino netizens went ballistic on social media Thursday after seeing red banners with the words “Welcome to the Philippines, Province of China” in English and Mandarin hung on pedestrian overpasses in Metro Manila.
The banners were seen hung on pedestrian overpasses in Philcoa and Quezon Avenue in Quezon City, in the southbound lane of C5, and near the Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Pasay City.
It was not immediately clear who hung the banners on the second anniversary of an international tribunal ruling that invalidated China’s sweeping claims over the entire South China Sea.
Former solicitor general Florin Hilbay was among those who posted a photo of the banner on social media. On Facebook he wrote “NOT FUNNY” in the description of his post.
“On this day, July 12, we commemorate our victory in Philippines v. China. On Metro Manila footbridges, these tarps suddenly appear,” he wrote further. “MMDA, LGUs, and citizens should immediately take these down.”
Twitter user Johnson L. Manabat (@JohnsonManabat) posted a photo of a similar banner taken along Quezon Avenue and wrote, “Welcome to the Philippines! Province of China?”
On the same platform Inquirer Metro (@InqMetro) said that, according to the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority, the slogans of the banners – which were supposed to welcome Chinese delegates on an incentive tour – may have been “mistranslated.”
Presidential Spokesman Harry Roque Jr. told Malacañang reporters that the Palace had nothing to do with the banners. He was “sure” the “enemies of the government” were behind them, he said.
Still on Twitter, user tavias (@tavvias) wrote, “Welcome to the Philippines, Province of China. What an insult to every Filipino who worked hard to fight for Independence.”
“Sorry to Chinese members. Mahal ko kayo but Philippines will always be Bansang Pilipinas. It will never be a Province of China,” read another tweet from HONEY SMILE (@Ten022796_) that accompanied a photo of the banner.
Still another Twitter user, Di Gong Yoo (@gabrant001), wrote: “Lmao the outrage against the person behind the banner in QC that says ‘Welcome to the Philippines, Province of China’. But where’s your outrage when the President condones China’s behavior in west PH sea? Hindi nga ba talaga tayo province ng China?”
In a decision released July 12, 2016, The Hague-based United Nations Permanent Court of Arbitration found that China “violated the Philippines’ sovereign rights in its exclusive economic zone” when it interfered with fishing and oil exploration in the area, constructed artificial islands, and allowed Chinese fishermen to fish in the zone.
The administration under President Benigno Aquino III initiated the arbitration case but the court handed down its verdict less than a month after Rodrigo Duterte took over as chief executive.
Duterte have since refused to present the decision to Chinese President Xi Jin Ping as he sought closer ties with Beijing while turning away from United States.
Just this February President Duterte joked about making the Philippines a “province of China” during an event attended by Filipino-Chinese businessmen./PN
