The Philippine government strongly condemned China Daily, a Chinese state media outlet, after it released an AI-generated video comparing Filipinos to "monkeys," accusing the content of racism, dehumanization, and distortion of the South China Sea dispute.
The Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs issued a statement strongly condemning the Chinese state media giant China Daily, demanding the immediate removal of the racist and dehumanizing video from its platforms.
The latest controversy arose from an AI-generated video posted on China Daily's Facebook page on 10 July. The main character in the video is a "timid monkey" wearing a Barong Tagalog, the national costume of the Philippines. The video shows the monkey making loud noises while being pushed onto a shabby karaoke stage on a boat by hands holding the U.S. and Japanese flags.
After being scolded for singing off-key, the monkey furrows its brow, pulls out a paper labeled "South China Sea Arbitration ruling," and is ultimately thrown into the sea and sprayed with high-pressure water jets.
The Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs stated in its release that the video, along with other caricatures published by Chinese media, contains content that dehumanizes, is racist, and significantly exceeds the bounds of legitimate political discourse.
"We draw a clear line against the depiction of Filipinos as monkeys in the 10 July video, which caused offense, distress, and is absolutely unacceptable. Legal and political disagreements do not justify such disgusting imagery, which has no place in the public discourse of responsible civilized nations," the statement said, warning that such imagery and disinformation only deepen mistrust between the two countries.
Meanwhile, Philippine Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro sharply rebuked the video, calling it "disgusting and shameful propaganda." He said, "This clip exposes the moral and intellectual decay of China’s propaganda machinery in a crude way. The erratic and volatile behavior of the Chinese Communist Party recently is too clear for us to ignore or let pass." Teodoro was recently banned by China from entering mainland China, Hong Kong, and Macau as of June.
Despite strong condemnation from the Philippine authorities, the video remains on China Daily's Facebook page, where the accompanying caption reinforces China's firm stance: "Ten years on, the so-called South China Sea Arbitration ruling has not been an instrument of peace but the source of conflict disguised as law. Relying on external powers and provoking turmoil in the South China Sea only reduces the Philippines to a 'pawn' in other countries’ geopolitical games."
Chinese state media have been posting a series of videos and cartoons mocking the Philippines' actions in the South China Sea over recent weeks. Besides the "monkey" image, the Philippines has also been depicted as a "clown" and a "snake." The Chinese government has yet to respond to the Philippines' criticisms on this matter.
This media clash using AI coincides with the 10th anniversary of the historic ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague, which favored the Philippines by declaring most of China’s maritime claims in the South China Sea legally unfounded under international law. China has consistently ignored the ruling, claiming the court lacks jurisdiction.
Tensions in the disputed maritime areas, particularly around the Spratly Islands and Scarborough Shoal, have escalated sharply in recent years. Chinese coast guard vessels often use high-pressure water cannons to block Philippine boats, causing damage and injuries. There have also been close encounters involving bladed weapons such as swords, spears, and knives, raising fears of a potential regional military conflict in the future.