Philippines Lodges Fierce Protest Against China Over 'Racist' AI Video
The Philippine government lodged a fierce diplomatic protest against China on Friday, local time, over a ‘racist’ video published by Chinese state media outlet China Daily. The video, which utilised artificial intelligence technology, depicted the Philippines as a cartoon monkey.
The clip, reported by AFP, represents the latest development in the protracted dispute between the Philippines and China over the South China Sea. Philippine Vice Foreign Minister Leo Herrera-Lim first conveyed ‘firm objections to the offensive content’ during a meeting with Chinese Ambassador Jing Quan on Thursday.
‘Herrera-Lim demanded the removal of the material, stressing that such content is inconsistent with the mutual respect expected between nations and does not support the healthy and stable management of bilateral relations,’ a statement from the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs read. The department subsequently filed a formal diplomatic protest condemning the video and cartoon, stating that China Daily had ‘crossed the line of legitimate political debate by using degrading, dehumanising, and racist depictions of the Filipino people.’ The Philippine Embassy in Beijing also wrote to the editor-in-chief of China Daily to demand the ‘immediate removal of the offensive material.’
The one-minute video, uploaded to China Daily’s Facebook page, features a timid monkey cartoon character dressed in a traditional Filipino barong being pushed onto a karaoke stage aboard a ship. As the monkey character begins singing lyrics that appear to align with China’s position on maritime delimitation talks between the Philippines and Japan, a voice shouts ‘wrong song’ and the monkey is handed a piece of paper reading ‘South China Sea Arbitral Ruling’. Two giant arms, emblazoned with the flags of the United States and Japan, then appear, load the monkey into a slingshot, and hurl it towards a water cannon—equipment previously used by Chinese Coast Guard vessels in confrontations with Filipino sailors and fishermen.
Philippine Defence Secretary Gilberto Teodoro said in a statement on Thursday evening that ‘the glorification of violence against the Filipino people and soldiers reveals the moral and intellectual bankruptcy of China’s propaganda machine.’ He added, ‘This latest act of dehumanisation further reveals that they are neither a secure and confident power, nor a trustworthy neighbour.’ A spokesperson for China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs responded by saying Beijing would not comment on the video as it ‘does not reflect the official position.’