Senator Erwin Tulfo slammed the Chinese Embassy in Manila after it publicly condemned statements made by several Philippine officials regarding the West Philippine Sea issue.
“You have no right to censure our officials for their statements about you taking away our territory—territory that has been proven to be ours,” Tulfo stressed.
The legislator’s remarks stemmed from a statement by Chinese Embassy Manila Deputy Spokesperson Guo Wei, who asserted that freedom of speech is not a license to smear others, especially the leaders of other countries.
Guo added that such actions are unacceptable, specifically highlighting a recent social media post by the Philippine Coast Guard Spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea, Comm. Jay Tarriela. The post featured AI-generated depictions of Chinese President Xi Jinping fuming in anger and flexing his muscles, and holding a boat with a tiny Philippine flag.
“If Chinese Embassy officials do not like how democracy works in the Philippines, they can leave anytime.”
Tulfo asserted: “If Chinese Embassy officials do not like how democracy works in the Philippines, they can leave anytime.”
“Our house, our rules. Freedom of speech is in our Constitution,” the legislator added.
“They cannot do it their way here because there is no freedom of speech in their country.”
Tulfo continued, “They cannot do it their way here because there is no freedom of speech in their country. Critics there are jailed, media is silenced, and opinions are controlled.”
Concluding his statement, he offered this advice to the Chinese officials: “If you want respect from Filipinos, then respect our Constitution. Respect our officials. Respect our freedom of speech. And respect the simple truth that this is not your country.”
