Palace rejects proposal to boycott China-made products

Malacañang on Monday distanced itself from the proposed boycott of products from China as a signal against Beijing’s supposed ‘bullying’ in the disputed Spratly islands. In a press briefing Monday, presidential spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said it is not the policy of the administration to boycott products as the administration prefers a peaceful settlement to the resolution of the matter. On Sunday, Albay Gov. Jose Salceda, an ally of President Benigno Aquino III, called on Filipinos not to buy “Made in China" products in the wake of intrusions of Chinese vessels in the Philippine Sea. Lacierda said Malacañang respects the opinion of Salceda “but, again, let me state that this is not administration’s policy." “We have a healthy trade with the People’s Republic of China so it’s not something that we could immediately call for without [thinking about the] consequences on our part," he said. “I think we have an investment in the trade between China and the Philippines and it’s not something that we can [disregard]," he added. He, however, said that anybody can do what he wants but the government will not impose such policy to the people. Lacierda believed the territorial dispute would not breed anti-Chinese sentiments among Filipinos as he urged the public not to put the blame on Filipino-Chinese in the country. “No, we don’t think so. No form of Sinophobia in our country… Most of us have Chinese blood one way or another," he said, admitting that he has Chinese blood, as well as President Aquino. “I think ang kailangan natin maalala ay huwag tayong mandamay ng mga hindi dapat idamay… I can say this for myself… we’re looking at this issue [from] the Filipino perspective," he added. He also noted that the dispute showed an anecdotal "surge of nationalism" on Facebook… “but we have to temper our comments," Lacierda said. — VS, GMA News