The Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC) on Thursday accused the Chinese Embassy in Manila of showing “clear disregard of diplomatic decorum and the sovereign laws” of the Philippines after the embassy questioned a law enforcement raid at a steel plant in Misamis Oriental.
The May operation at Sanjia Steel Corporation in Tagoloan led to the arrest of 69 Chinese workers for allegedly handling hazardous materials. The firm is owned by Tony Yang, brother of Michael Yang, who served as presidential economic adviser during the Duterte administration.
The Chinese Embassy previously questioned why Chinese nationals were arrested while around 300 Filipino workers were released and criticized Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr.’s presence during the operation.
“Does every problem discovered at a local factory require the Defense Secretary to personally lead a team to arrest workers? Or is it only when Chinese workers are involved that the Defense Secretary sends in the military to arrest them?” the embassy said in a statement Tuesday.
Rejecting the criticism, PAOCC defended the inter-agency operation as a legitimate domestic law-enforcement action.
“As diplomatic representatives hosted by our nation, lecturing host authorities on lawful domestic operations is inappropriate,” PAOCC said. “We challenge the Embassy to allow the same open public dialogue on Chinese social media platforms so that the Chinese people can be informed of the full, transparent facts.”
PAOCC emphasized that the raid was “not an action against any nationality” and that military support “should not be misconstrued as a military operation against Chinese workers.”
“For PAOCC and its partner agencies, this is purely a matter of law enforcement. No nationality is being targeted. The rule of law, individual rights and due process remain paramount at all times,” the commission added.
Meanwhile, Teodoro lashed out at the embassy, accusing it of acting as a public relations firm for Yang.
“The Chinese Embassy is now a PR firm for Tony Yang and other illegal activities in this Country which are apparently their clients,” Teodoro said in a personal statement, urging the public to oppose the embassy’s remarks, “kailangan nating ipakita na hindi tayo papayag dito.”