China’s misreading of the Filipino

On May 13, 2026, I had a pleasant, informal lunch meeting with Mr. Yudai Ueno, consul-general of Japan in Cebu, at his invitation. In the email invitation, a member of his staff wrote that the consul-general had recently assumed his post and was an avid reader of this column, and that I might be able to help him better understand Cebu and its current issues from my perspective.

It was indeed an honor to be invited to a casual meeting with the consul-general. He has been actively engaging with the community to strengthen friendship between the Philippines and Japan, promote cultural exchanges and trade and investment, and support cooperation projects in areas such as solid waste management, particularly through the use of advanced technologies for which Japan is well known.

Speaking with journalists, academics, community leaders, and other local stakeholders helps a diplomatic post understand the community beyond formal briefings, including its political dynamics, economic concerns, social issues, and local perspectives.

I mention this neither to compare the good consul general of Japan with officials of other diplomatic posts in Cebu nor to suggest that he shares any of the views I have expressed in this column. Our conversation was cordial and constructive, and I felt entirely at ease speaking with him. It should be understood entirely in that context.

Yet the meeting reminded me of what diplomatic relations are all about --engagement, listening, and respect for the local community. A diplomat may firmly defend his or her government’s position, but when China’s consul general in Cebu, Zhang Zhen, recently invoked possible consequences for trade, tourism, or bilateral relations in response to a resolution passed by the Cebu City Council celebrating West Philippine Sea Victory Day, she risked crossing the line between stating her government’s position and undue pressure.

It is not the act of a country secure in its own strength. China already has great economic weight and a deep cultural influence in the region and across the world. It does not need to react to a local resolution with warnings about trade, tourism, or relations.

Last week, China Daily posted an AI-generated animation showing a timid monkey in Filipino attire on a karaoke stage aboard a boat, depicting Filipinos as a stooge of the United States and Japan. The Department of Foreign Affairs condemned the video as dehumanizing and racist and demanded its removal. A Chinese foreign ministry spokesman quickly distanced the Chinese government from the video itself while taking the opportunity to reiterate Beijing’s position that the 2016 West Philippine Sea arbitral ruling is illegal and void.

What cannot be denied, however, is that China Daily is a state-controlled, Communist Party-aligned English-language newspaper. In other words, it carries Beijing’s official narrative rather than engaging in independent journalism.

It is not that we Filipinos are easily offended by such an amateurish stunt. We are too comfortable in our own skin and too secure in our Malay features to feel insulted or diminished by it. The real problem is that Chinese state media and propaganda have misread the long and complicated Filipino relationship with China.

Chinese traders, migrants, and their descendants have been woven into Philippine economic, cultural, and political life for centuries. Filipinos can appreciate Chinese civilization, maintain close relationships with Filipino-Chinese communities, and welcome cooperation with the Chinese people while opposing the actions of the government in Beijing.

Chinese propaganda appears incapable of understanding that distinction. Worse, it has failed to recognize and make constructive use of this historical nuance, rooted in centuries of cultural familiarity, commercial exchange, family ties, and social interaction --an enormous reservoir of goodwill from which a more perceptive diplomacy could have drawn.