China envoy to PH gov’t: Deal with illegal Chinese workers professionally
Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Zhao Jianhua. DARRYL ESGUERRA / INQUIRER.net
MANILA, Philippines—Chinese Ambassador Zhao Jinhua on Monday appealed to the Philippine government to “professionally” deal with illegal Chinese workers in the country.
“We would also call on the law enforcement agencies here to deal with this issue professionally, meaning that you have to take into consideration the humanitarian needs of those Chinese nationals, as we are doing exactly when it comes to Filipinos working illegally in China,” Zhao told reporters in Malacañang.
The Chinese envoy also said that the “policy is very clear,” that it’s up to the Philippine government to deal with Chinese nationals illegally working here in the country.
While he admitted that there are numerous Chinese nationals illegally working in the country, Zhao noted that the case is the same in China where many Filipinos are working illegally.
“There are, there is such a problem. And not only there’s problem of Chinese working illegally here in the Philippines, but also there are Filipinos working illegally in China, so we’re handling this in accordance with our respective laws and regulations, and also we’re handling this professionally in the spirit of our friendship and cooperation,” he said.
Zhao also said that China will not resort to a “tit for tat” approach if the Philippines decides to deport illegal Chinese workers
“That’s not really the diplomatic way to do it, or to describe it. I think it’s an obligation of the party concerned, respective countries to carry out their laws and regulations. So I don’t want to put this issue in such a way that we’re doing tit for tat,” he said.
Earlier, the Senate committee on labor, employment, and human resources development conducted a probe on the influx of Chinese workers in the country.
The inquiry, which was first held last Nov. 26, 2018, was prompted following the arrest of 93 Chinese nationals in an illegal gambling facility in Pasig City. / gsg
