Teodoro slams China’s ‘squid tactic,’ calls threat vs Filipinos ‘blackmail’

In a statement posted on Facebook on Saturday, August 15, Teodoro said the Chinese Foreign Ministry continued to evade what he called the “crucial issue” — whether the Chinese nationals arrested in the Philippines were involved in illegal activities.

“The plain and simple answer is yes,” Teodoro said.

He cited allegations that the individuals were involved in the “regurgitation of substandard, radioactively tainted steel,” dumping untreated polluted water into rivers and releasing untreated toxic fumes.

Teodoro said these allegations were backed by “indisputable and legally admissible evidence” gathered by law enforcement authorities through valid search warrants issued by Philippine courts.

The defense chief also accused Chinese embassy officials of intervening in local law enforcement processes and threatening retaliation against Filipinos.

“The answer, as revealed in a Senate hearing, is yes,” Teodoro said.

His statement came after China announced that it had taken action against more than 100 Filipinos for alleged illegal employment and illegal residence.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said on August 10 that Chinese immigration authorities had conducted special operations against the Filipinos in accordance with Chinese law and that their rights were protected.

The move came amid tensions over the Philippines’ detention of Chinese nationals.

Teodoro, however, said the Chinese nationals arrested in the Philippines were not merely rank-and-file workers but the “principals” of allegedly illegal enterprises.

He said the arrests were carried out through search warrants issued by Philippine courts, adding that Chinese officials appeared to focus on the suspects’ visas and passports rather than the alleged illegal activities.

Teodoro also rejected what he described as China’s attempt to link the cases of Filipinos in China to Philippine law enforcement operations.

“The latest Chinese Foreign Ministry statement against me is a classic squid tactic—disinformation through avoidance,” he said.

‘Extortion and blackmail’

Teodoro also took issue with China’s warning that Filipinos would “bear the brunt” of its actions.

He described the warning as an indiscriminate threat to retaliate against Filipinos.

“Threatening that they will ‘bear the brunt’ is an indiscriminate threat to retaliate against all Filipinos, which is, plain and simple, extortion and blackmail beyond doubt!” Teodoro said.

“The Filipino people will not fall for this,” he added.

Teodoro ended his statement with a defiant message: “Di tayo pasisiil!” (We will not allow ourselves to be oppressed.)

The arrest of Chinese workers during a May raid on a steel firm in Misamis Oriental further strained already tense relations between Manila and Beijing, which have been marked by repeated confrontations in the South China Sea.

— Kristine Daguno-Bersamina with a report from Cristina Chi