The marginalization of Filipinos in our conflict with Taiwan
In the aftermath of the fatal shooting of a 65-year old Taiwanese fisherman allegedly poaching in Philippine waters with his boat crew, our overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in Taiwan have borne the brunt of the backlash. Our OFWs have been threatened from being fired at work and deported. Lately, they have been warned to stay home and not to venture outside for their safety from local reprisals.
To date, some Filipinos have been attacked with baseball bats, lead pipes, refused services in restaurants and stores, and denigrated as "thugs" and “dogs.”
While these things are happening, the Taiwanese government’s response is characteristically indifferent, if not, intransigent. It has promised to protect our OFWs from the backlash, but so far, no one has been arrested in the beating of a Filipino worker or investigated in the mistreatment of Filipino customers in restaurants and stores.
To make matters worst, despite repeated apologies from our government for the incident, it is rejecting them. Instead of cooling down tempers, it toys with our country’s labor and remittances insecurities by freezing the hiring of OFWs and threatening to send them all back home. Not content with its economic game, it decided to provoke us with a military exercise in our territorial waters near northern Philippines.
I can understand the overreaction of the Taiwanese people even the racially charged ones. As they say, it goes with the territory. Taiwan is one of the most popular destinations for our OFWs with nearly 2,000 applications every month. Currently, there are 87,000 Filipinos working mostly as electronic factory workers and caregivers in Taiwan.
With Taiwan’s relative economic prosperity and our dependence in its labor market, it is now in a position to feel superior and dominant over us----that is, to punish us with labor sanctions, cessation of economic exchanges, and even marginalize us as their poor and dependent neighbors.
It is unfortunate it has decided to be less diplomatic again this time.
Taiwan’s arrogant behavior is nothing new. It has a history of humiliating us. Two years ago, they stood former Senator Mar Roxas, President Benigno Aquino’s emissary up for hours without food and drinks during the meeting over the controversy generated by our country’s deportation of 14 Taiwanese fraudsters wanted by the Taiwan Police, China, and INTERPOL to China. Never mind that we are angry at each other but there is always a room for a diplomatic protocol.
And now, they’re humiliating us again by demanding apologies after apologies with the flimsy reasons that they are inadequate and insincere.
How do we deal with an arrogant Taiwan? I think we can deal with them easily. After all, they are just being used by China as a pawn in the territorial dispute in West Philippine Sea. Besides, their days are numbered.
What I have difficulty dealing with is the fact that in the midst of a hostility against us, some Filipinos have the temerity to muddle the issue by criticizing our government’s response and sucking up to Taiwan’s behavior and calling it exemplary. For what end? In my limited understanding, I know it is not about international law.
I am not a lawyer but I thought one is supposed to investigate and know the facts of the case before even making a decent opinion.
What exemplary act does Taiwan set internationally when despite repeated formal apologies, it is rejecting them? What exemplary act does it set internationally when instead of cooling things down, it is escalating it with a military drill in our territorial waters?
And talking about territorial waters, economic exclusive zone, and violation of international law. Taiwan is not even a signatory to 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and its political status is ambiguous as a defunct state due to the loss of membership in the United Nations and lack of diplomatic recognition!
How then does it possess the adequate legal foundation under the international law for its territorial claim? What business then do their fishermen have poaching in our economic exclusive zone?
I understand that Taiwan has bilateral trade relations and a de facto cultural and economic office in our country. However, in the context of our country’s supports for the “One-China Policy,” the policy that holds that there is but one China and that Taiwan is part of China, Taiwan is basically a renegade province of China that will eventually be reunited to the mainland.
China’s posturing makes it easier for me to understand why it is egging us and applauding Taiwan’s sanctions and measures against us. It is in its long-term interest to fan the flame of Taiwan’s territorial disputes with us.
But for fellow Filipinos to criticize our government’s response and applaud Taiwan’s actions as exemplary is not only misdirected but also harmful to our self-respect as a people.
To date, some Filipinos have been attacked with baseball bats, lead pipes, refused services in restaurants and stores, and denigrated as "thugs" and “dogs.”
While these things are happening, the Taiwanese government’s response is characteristically indifferent, if not, intransigent. It has promised to protect our OFWs from the backlash, but so far, no one has been arrested in the beating of a Filipino worker or investigated in the mistreatment of Filipino customers in restaurants and stores.
To make matters worst, despite repeated apologies from our government for the incident, it is rejecting them. Instead of cooling down tempers, it toys with our country’s labor and remittances insecurities by freezing the hiring of OFWs and threatening to send them all back home. Not content with its economic game, it decided to provoke us with a military exercise in our territorial waters near northern Philippines.
I can understand the overreaction of the Taiwanese people even the racially charged ones. As they say, it goes with the territory. Taiwan is one of the most popular destinations for our OFWs with nearly 2,000 applications every month. Currently, there are 87,000 Filipinos working mostly as electronic factory workers and caregivers in Taiwan.
With Taiwan’s relative economic prosperity and our dependence in its labor market, it is now in a position to feel superior and dominant over us----that is, to punish us with labor sanctions, cessation of economic exchanges, and even marginalize us as their poor and dependent neighbors.
It is unfortunate it has decided to be less diplomatic again this time.
Taiwan’s arrogant behavior is nothing new. It has a history of humiliating us. Two years ago, they stood former Senator Mar Roxas, President Benigno Aquino’s emissary up for hours without food and drinks during the meeting over the controversy generated by our country’s deportation of 14 Taiwanese fraudsters wanted by the Taiwan Police, China, and INTERPOL to China. Never mind that we are angry at each other but there is always a room for a diplomatic protocol.
And now, they’re humiliating us again by demanding apologies after apologies with the flimsy reasons that they are inadequate and insincere.
How do we deal with an arrogant Taiwan? I think we can deal with them easily. After all, they are just being used by China as a pawn in the territorial dispute in West Philippine Sea. Besides, their days are numbered.
What I have difficulty dealing with is the fact that in the midst of a hostility against us, some Filipinos have the temerity to muddle the issue by criticizing our government’s response and sucking up to Taiwan’s behavior and calling it exemplary. For what end? In my limited understanding, I know it is not about international law.
I am not a lawyer but I thought one is supposed to investigate and know the facts of the case before even making a decent opinion.
What exemplary act does Taiwan set internationally when despite repeated formal apologies, it is rejecting them? What exemplary act does it set internationally when instead of cooling things down, it is escalating it with a military drill in our territorial waters?
And talking about territorial waters, economic exclusive zone, and violation of international law. Taiwan is not even a signatory to 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and its political status is ambiguous as a defunct state due to the loss of membership in the United Nations and lack of diplomatic recognition!
How then does it possess the adequate legal foundation under the international law for its territorial claim? What business then do their fishermen have poaching in our economic exclusive zone?
I understand that Taiwan has bilateral trade relations and a de facto cultural and economic office in our country. However, in the context of our country’s supports for the “One-China Policy,” the policy that holds that there is but one China and that Taiwan is part of China, Taiwan is basically a renegade province of China that will eventually be reunited to the mainland.
China’s posturing makes it easier for me to understand why it is egging us and applauding Taiwan’s sanctions and measures against us. It is in its long-term interest to fan the flame of Taiwan’s territorial disputes with us.
But for fellow Filipinos to criticize our government’s response and applaud Taiwan’s actions as exemplary is not only misdirected but also harmful to our self-respect as a people.
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