MANILA, Philippines (Update 3, 4:54p.m.) — Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri claimed Tuesday that China has placed the Philippines in a tourism blacklist over the continued operations of offshore gaming operators in the country, which Beijing’s embassy in Manila denied.
Zubiri said during a Senate inquiry on the costs and benefits of Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGOs) that Chinese Ambassador Huang Xilian disclosed this to him in a meeting with other senators on Monday.
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“Ambassador Huang said that the Philippines now is part of a blacklist of tourist sites because they do not know if the tourist going there will be joining POGO operations and they do not know if their nationals who go to the Philippines will be safe from illegal activities done by the Triad, by the syndicates operating POGO,” Zubiri said.
But in a statement later Tuesday, the Chinese Embassy said it actually expects more of its citizens to come to the Philippines as tourists.
“Before the Covid-19 pandemic close to two million Chinese nationals traveled to the Philippines in 2019, making China the second largest source of tourists. We expect more Chinese tourists to come to this country after the pandemic,” the Chinese Embassy said.
Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian, who was also present at the meeting with Huang, told reporters separately that the blacklisting of the Philippines is not yet in effect. He said that the Chinese envoy warned that the continued operation of POGOs could affect tourism in the country.
"Ang rinig ko kasi possible na ma-blacklist o ma-restrict kasi wala pa namang official pronouncement," Gatchalian said. "Baka iyong appreciation namin [ni Senate President Zubiri] iba, but definitely ang aming pagkakaintindi ay makakaapekto ito sa turismo ng ating bansa."
(What I heard is that it's possible for us to be blacklisted or restricted, but there is no official pronouncement yet ... Maybe our appreciation is different, but definitely we understood that this will affect our country's tourism.)
The Chinese Embassy in Manila remains mum on whether the Philippines is in a blacklist over POGOs, which largely service patrons from China where gambling is illegal.
RELATED: Chinese embassy to ‘step up law enforcement’ following POGO-related crimes
China’s culture and tourism ministry has referred to the existence of a tourism blacklist at least three times since it was first announced in August 2020. This was when it said it will impose travel restrictions on specific areas that were “endangering the personal and property safety of Chinese citizens.” This blacklist has yet to be made public.
China is among the top sources of tourist arrivals to the Philippines, with Chinese residents accounting for 1,257,962 arrivals in 2019, according to data from the Department of Tourism. Arrivals from China dropped to 22,236 this year.
Earlier during the hearing, National Economic Development Authority Undersecretary Rosemarie Edillon also referred to a blacklist by China, but noted that this has not been made public although it may target gambling destinations, including the Philippines.
The inquiry on POGOs was launched as senators saw a spike in crimes related to the industry which they feared may spook investors from doing business in the country.
Some lawmakers, including Sens. Grace Poe and Gatchalian, have called on the government to put an end to POGOs, which at its peak in 2019 contributed to up to 0.67% of the country's gross domestic product.
Gatchalian, who chairs the Senate ways and means panel, said he might recommend to President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. to order a stop to POGO operations owing to its supposed social costs.
"My own assessment, hindi natin kailangan ng POGO dahil ang crime ay hindi natin matanggal sa POGO at iyong conviction mababa. Kung ang conviction natin mababa, 'pag mago-operate pa sila dito in the next five years, makakaasa tayong iyong crime nandiyan pa rin," he said.
(In my own assessment, we don't need POGOs because we can't remove crime from them and the conviction rate is low. If our conviction rate is low and POGOs continue to operate in the next five years, we can expect that crime will remain.)
STORY FROM 2020: Palace: Deportation of Chinese nationals nabbed in POGO raid up to Immigration