HK eyes more sanctions against PH Posted on 3/01/2014 THE Hong Kong government has warned that it is prepared to implement more sanctions against the Philippines until a resolution to the 2010 Manila hostage incident is reached. Hong Kong is demanding an apology from the Philippine government for the bungled rescue attempt that left eight Chinese tourists dead. In a recent talk with the Chinese media, Hong Kong chief executive Chun-Yin Leung sought “sincerity” from the Philippine government. He also demanded a “satisfactory” response to the demands of survivors and the victims’ families. “I urge the Philippine government to demonstrate sincerity and resolve in bringing the discussion to a satisfactory conclusion so that we do not have to implement further sanctions,” Leung was quoted as saying. Manila’s decision not to apologize for the bus hostage incident resulted in the cancellation of visa-free privileges previously extended to Filipino official and business passport holders this year. Cabinet Secretary Rene Almendras earlier disclosed that the Philippine government was ready to apologize as early as November last year, but Manila and Hong Kong could not reach a consensus on the wording. Leung said the families of the victims “are not demanding and have never demanded, a personal apology from the Philippine president for the criminal act committed by an individual as some have alleged.” “They are seeking an apology from the Philippine government for the failure and lapses of their officials in handling the rescue operation during which eight Hong Kong residents lost their lives and seven others sustained injuries,” Leung added. The Hong Kong leader said they remain open to negotiations with the Philippine government. “The door to further discussions between the two sides remains open, and the ball is in the Philippine court,” Leung said. Sought for comments, Presidential Communications Operations Office Secretary Sonny Coloma said the government is doing everything it can to resolve the incident. “We are looking for a solution. We have not been remiss in trying to understand the position of Hong Kong, and we have not been remiss in relaying our position and our alternative proposal,” Coloma said. “We are trying to reach an understanding because it takes two to tango,” Coloma added. Negative sentiment A survey conducted by the Chinese University found that majority of the Hong Kong people believe revoking the visa-free access for Philippine officials is not enough to obtain an apology from the Philippines. Results showed 70 per cent of 762 respondents want economic sanctions, while half believed the government should ban the employment of domestic workers from the Philippines. In his recent interview with The New York Times, President Benigno Aquino III said cited parallel incidents where Filipinos were also killed in China but Beijing gave neither apology nor monetary compensation. In October 2013, Filipina doctor Lina Bunyi was killed after a sports utility vehicle plowed into a crowd of tourists in Tiananmen Square in Beijing before it exploded. In 2005, Filipino businessman Emmanuel Madrigal and his daughter Regina Mia were stabbed to death also on Tiananmen Square by a Chinese man, supposedly in relation to anti-Japanese protests. “The wording is their issue,” said Almendras, who was tasked by Aquino to go to Hong Kong in the fourth quarter of 2013 to find a win-win solution to the problem. Almendras, however, declined to elaborate on the issues surrounding the wording of the shelved apology.
Posted on: Wed, 05 Mar 2014 05:15:48 +0000
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