The Philippine government has issued a forceful condemnation of China Daily, the state-run news outlet, for publishing an artificial intelligence-generated video that portrayed Filipinos as monkeys in what Manila describes as racist and dehumanising propaganda. The insulting material appeared on China Daily's Facebook account on July 10, prompting immediate demands from the Philippine foreign ministry that the content be removed entirely. The Chinese Embassy in Manila has not provided any official response to requests for clarification regarding the incident, leaving the video's origin and intent largely unexplained by Beijing's diplomatic channels.
The controversial animation contained deeply offensive imagery in which a monkey dressed in traditional Filipino clothing was shown being manipulated by disembodied arms representing the United States and Japan. The animation directed the monkey figure to sing specific lyrics while being verbally abused with derogatory language. The video then depicted the monkey holding a sheet of paper inscribed with "South China Sea arbitration award" before being violently thrown into the ocean and subjected to water cannon blasts from a vessel. The crude allegory appeared designed to mock both the Philippines' alliance with Western nations and its reliance on international legal mechanisms to assert maritime claims in the disputed waterway.
Philippine Defence Secretary Gilberto Teodoro issued a particularly scathing response to the video, characterising it as contemptible propaganda that undermines any claim Beijing might make to responsible regional leadership. Teodoro's statement, released late Thursday, went beyond simple diplomatic protest to question the broader implications of such inflammatory material for regional stability and trust. He argued that resorting to racist imagery and threats indicated a fundamental failure of governance, suggesting that a confident and secure state would rely on evidence, reasoned argument, and respect for international law rather than inflammatory propaganda designed to provoke and humiliate.
In his formal statement, Teodoro directly linked the video's content to what he termed the "moral and intellectual bankruptcy" of China's propaganda apparatus. He emphasised that the mockery of the 2016 Arbitral Award, which invalidated China's expansive territorial claims in the South China Sea, combined with the video's apparent celebration of violence against Filipino citizens and military personnel, represented a troubling escalation in rhetorical aggression. The Defence Secretary's language suggested that Manila views such propaganda not merely as offensive but as revealing a deeper insecurity within Beijing's approach to regional disputes and international law.
The timing of China Daily's video publication carried particular significance within the context of Philippine commemorative activities. July 10 marked the tenth anniversary of the landmark 2016 arbitral tribunal ruling that comprehensively rejected China's nine-dash line claims and affirmed the Philippines' maritime rights under international law. While the Philippines has embraced this ruling as vindication of its legal position, China has consistently rejected the arbitral outcome, refusing to acknowledge its binding authority. The video's release on this symbolically important date suggested a deliberate attempt by Chinese state media to undermine and ridicule the anniversary celebrations.
The incident reflects the persistently elevated tensions between Manila and Beijing over contested waters in the South China Sea. Beyond this specific propaganda episode, the two countries have experienced numerous confrontations at sea involving Chinese and Philippine vessels, with accusations of aggressive manoeuvres, dangerous interceptions, and deliberate obstruction. These maritime incidents have created an environment of mutual suspicion and frequent diplomatic protests, with each side accusing the other of violating international maritime law and destabilising regional peace.
Additional grievances compound the existing friction between the neighbouring nations. Beijing has previously imposed sanctions targeting Teodoro personally, apparently in response to his strong defence of Philippine sovereignty and his criticism of Chinese activities in the region. More recently, the installation of a floating barrier at the entrance to Scarborough Shoal, one of the South China Sea's most hotly contested features, prompted strong Philippine objections. Although China eventually removed the barrier following sustained diplomatic pressure and public protest from Manila, the incident demonstrated Beijing's willingness to take provocative unilateral actions despite international opposition and regional concerns.
The Philippine foreign ministry's formal response emphasised that the nation would not tolerate such dehumanising depictions under any circumstances. In their statement released Thursday evening, officials declared that they were drawing a firm line against the portrayal of Filipinos as monkeys in the July 10 video, describing the content as deeply offensive, distressing, and fundamentally unacceptable. This language signalled that Manila views the incident not as a isolated media mistake but as a deliberate attack on Filipino dignity and a reflection of how Chinese state authorities choose to characterise and treat the Philippine people.
Tedor's subsequent commentary broadened the critique beyond the specific video to characterise what he described as "schizophrenic behaviour" by the Chinese Communist Party. His observation suggested that the government in Beijing displays inconsistency and unpredictability in its dealings with neighbouring states, alternating between cooperative rhetoric and aggressive actions, conciliatory gestures and inflammatory propaganda. This characterisation implies that from Manila's perspective, China demonstrates neither the stability nor the trustworthiness necessary for constructive regional partnership, undermining confidence in Beijing's intentions even when diplomatic channels appear calm.
For Southeast Asian observers monitoring Philippines-China relations, this incident underscores the deteriorating quality of bilateral discourse and the risks posed by state-sponsored media operations that abandon journalistic norms in favour of crude propaganda. The use of artificial intelligence to generate dehumanising content represents a modern dimension to historical patterns of propaganda, potentially enabling the rapid production and dissemination of inflammatory material that can inflame public opinion and complicate diplomatic resolution of substantive disputes. The incident also raises questions about oversight and editorial standards within Chinese state media institutions, and whether such content reflects deliberate strategy from Beijing's leadership or operates with some degree of independence.
The broader implications for regional stability are significant. As the Philippines continues to assert its maritime claims and strengthen security cooperation with the United States, Japan, and other regional partners, inflammatory propaganda from Chinese state sources risks further polarising the region and reducing space for pragmatic negotiation and compromise. The video incident demonstrates how even peripheral propaganda operations can damage bilateral relations and contribute to an atmosphere of mistrust that makes resolving substantive territorial and maritime disputes increasingly difficult. For Malaysia and other Southeast Asian nations with their own territorial concerns in the South China Sea, the episode provides a cautionary example of how state media can be weaponised to undermine regional peace and stability.
