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Anti-Filipino sentiment refers to the general dislike or hatred towards thePhilippines,Filipinos, orFilipino culture. This can come in the form of direct slurs or persecution, in the form of connotedmicroaggressions, or depictions of the Philippines or theFilipino people as being inferior in some formpsychologically,culturally or physically.
During the 1970–80s, Hong Kong saw the rise of a Filipino population. Many of these Filipinos were working as domestic helpers.[1] The increase of Filipino population there created clashes between Hong Kong residents and Filipino workers. TheDemocratic Alliance for the Betterment of Hong Kong launched an advocacy that Filipinos were causing a significant rise in local unemployment in Hong Kong and costing billions in welfare treatment.[2]
Anti-Filipino sentiment in Hong Kong rose again after the2010 hostage crisis inManila,Metro Manila,Philippines, in which a bus full of mostlyHong Kong tourists riding in aHong Thai Bus wasbesieged by a formerFilipino police officer,[1] and where subsequent investigations found Filipino officials' handling of the hostage crisis to be directly responsible for the hostages' deaths.[2][3][4] Tensions eased after Cabinet SecretaryJose Rene Almendras andJoseph Estrada secretly went to Hong Kong to talk to officials and the victim's families.[5]
Chineseracism against Filipinos has intensified in the 21st century, especially in Chinese social media, where Chinese accounts have depicted the Filipinos as "gullible banana sellers and maids".[6]
In 2016, anti-Filipino sentiment existed within the Confederation of Indonesian Worker's Unions (KPSI) organization after the recent kidnappings of Indonesian citizens by Sulu-based terrorist group,Abu Sayyaf. A protest was held by a group of Indonesian protesters of KPSI when they gathered in front of the Philippine Embassy in Indonesia, holding banners that read "Go to hell Philippines and Abu Sayyaf" and "Destroy the Philippines and Abu Sayyaf" to demanding more action from the Philippine government to fighting terrorism in their country, which has since affected neighbouring countries.[7][8]
Filipinos and other foreign migrant workers experience discrimination in most Gulf Arab nations, where they are given very few human rights. A Filipina maid in Kuwait was killed in 2019 by her employers and stored in a freezer. This, and other incidents of human rights abuses, led to the2018 Kuwait–Philippines diplomatic crisis, which banned Filipinos from working in the Kuwait until it enacted reforms.[9]
The anti-Filipino sentiment is most notable in the state ofSabah, in Malaysia, due to a large presence of FilipinoMoroillegal immigrants, causing simmering resentment in the state.[10] Sabahan localspejoratively refer to illegal immigrants from the southern Philippines asPilak, meaningsilver ormoney in theTausug language.[11] Some Sabahan locals have accused Muslim Filipino illegal immigrants, who arrived in the 1970s from theSouthern Philippines insurgency,[12] have "brought along their social problems, culture of crime, andpoverty conditions", as well as "taking away jobs, business opportunities" and allegedly "stealing Sabahannative land (NCR)" in the state.[10] This hatred was further strengthened when many of these illegal immigrants were involved in crime, mostly robbery, murder and rape. Locals became the main victims which affected the security of the state, as evidenced by the1985 ambush,2000 kidnappings and2013 standoff.[13][14][15][16][17] Aroyal commission of inquiry on illegal immigrants in Sabah found that large amounts had been spent for these Filipino illegal immigrants' life maintenance and the amount remains unpaid until today, despite attempts to recover the monies. Sabah Health Department said that infectious disease among illegal immigrants was on the rise resulting in more expenditures, as well as provisions for more funds to accommodate the logistics, such as medical officers and others.[18] This discrimination was a result of Filipino immigrants to Sabah fleeing the violence of theMoro conflict which destroyed their homes inMindanao andSulu; a conflictoriginated from the atrocities committed duringFerdinand Marcosdictatorship in the 1970s under hisMartial Law, which include massacres and abuses towards the Muslim community in Southern Mindanao.[19][20] Filipino refugees also feel trapped as the Malaysian government refused to grant citizenship to many such refugees, classifying them as a stateless people.[21]
The estimated number of Filipinos working in Singapore tripled in the past decade to about 167,000, as of 2013, according to Philippines census data. Amid increasing general resentment towards foreigners, a backlash towards Filipinos has taken place in Singapore. In 2014, a plan to hold a Philippine Independence Day celebration on Singapore's main shopping street,Orchard Road, was cancelled following online complaints by some Singaporeans who said the space was special to locals. One blogger called the move "insensitive", saying: "Celebrating your Independence Day openly in the public (especially [at a] iconic/tourist location like Orchard Road) is provocative".[22][23]
Anti-Filipino sentiment has continued to swirl online, culminating in a blog titled "Blood Stained Singapore" suggesting ways to abuse Filipinos, calling them "an infestation". The suggestions, which included pushing Filipinos out of trains and threats to sprayinsecticide on them, eventually caused the blog to be taken down by Google for infringing content rules.[24][25]
Anti-Filipino sentiment in Taiwan was noticeable in 2013, as a result of thePhilippine Coast Guard killing a Taiwanese fisherman.[26] Subsequently, there was widespread discrimination towards Filipino workers with Taiwanese businesses, taking off any Filipino related products from their shelves and some shops refusing to welcome Filipino customers.[26][27] Sanctions placed by the Taiwanese government were removed after an official apology from the Philippine side was made.[28]
Following apoisoning incident at theStepping Hill Hospital in 2011 by a Filipino nurse named Victorino Chua, theDaily Mail published an article with a headline of "NHS still hiring Filipino nurses", which was condemned by many organizations for 'singling out nurses from the Philippines for special criticism on the basis of one criminal case'.[29] Many Filipinos andBritish Filipinos criticized the response of theBritish media in general to the poisoning, stating that it was motivated by political convictions and an 'attempt to discredit public sector workers', including Filipino workers who were immigrants.[30]
TheAmerican colonization of the Philippines instigated the immigration of many Filipinos to America, either aspensionados, who came to further their education, or as laborers, who worked inHawaiianplantations,California farms, and theAlaska fishing industry.[31]
Ethnic discrimination towards Filipinos in America was evident during the American colonial period in the Philippines. Filipino immigrants suffered from wider anti-Oriental prejudice present in America at the time, often confused with the Chinese and Japanese immigrants that had preceded them.[32] Filipinos were perceived to be taking the jobs ofwhite Americans. They were accused of attracting white women which led to the passing of ananti-miscegenation law.[33] These interactions between Filipino men and white women were facilitated in part by thetaxi dance halls, often visited by the migrant population, during the 1920s.[34][32] These were merelyracial prejudices. Filipino immigrants in America were affected by various socio-economic factors. The majority of Filipino immigrants of that era were men. The gender ratio of Filipino males to females in California then was approximately 14 to 1. Filipino workers were forced to live in poor conditions since they were poorly paid.[35]
The first documented incident occurred onNew Year's Eve 1926, inStockton, when Filipinos were stabbed and beaten.[33][36] These anti-Filipino attacks increased with theGreat Depression.[37] Thus, the Stockton 1926 attack was not the last: in November 1927, Filipinos wereattacked inYakima Valley, Washington;[38] in September 1928, Filipinos were attacked inWenatchee Valley, Washington;[39] in October 1929, Filipinos were attacked inExeter, California;[36] and in January 1930, Filipinos were attacked inWatsonville, California, during theWatsonville Riots, leading to the death of Fermin Tobera.[36][40] In Stockton'sLittle Manila, the Filipino Federation of America building was bombed.[41] In the context of these rising tensions, the government felt compelled to act. Firstly, at a regional level, as the state legislature of California declared Filipinos to be a threat to racial stability.[citation needed] Action at a national level followed in 1934, asCongress passed theTydings-McDuffie Act.[42] This paved the way for the later independence of the Philippines and effectively halted large-scale Filipino migration to the United States.[43]
World War II was a significant turning point for American views towards Filipinos. During the early period of the war, Filipinos were prohibited to join the army.[44] However, in 1942, PresidentFranklin Roosevelt allowedFilipinos to serve in the armed forces. During the war, many Filipinos fought with Americans in Asia and Europe, while some opted to be civilians involved inmobilization efforts. Filipinos earned acceptance and admiration by the end of the war. The United States recognized and affirmed the Filipinos' right to citizenship with the amendedNationality Act of 1940. Through the amendment, non-citizens who joined the military were given opportunity to attain citizenship. About ten thousand Filipinos became American citizens through the amendment.[45]
In the 1990s, Filipino Americans in Alaska were depicted negatively in the media, often as liabilities and associated with gang violence.[46] In the 2000s, Filipino American students in California were often stereotyped as lazy delinquents who were not encouraged to pursue college.[47]
There are a variety of derogatory terms referring to thePhilippines andFilipinos. Many of these terms are viewed asracist. However, these terms do not necessarily refer to Filipinos as a whole; they can also refer to specific policies or specific time periods in history.
Malaysia's Inspector-General of Police Norian Mai said Mr Misuari and six of his followers were arrested at 3.30 am on Saturday (1930 GMT Friday) on Jampiras island off Sabah state. Manila had ordered his arrest on charges of instigating a rebellion after the government suspended his governorship of an autonomous Muslim region in Mindanao, the ARMM. Although the Philippines has no extradition treaty with Malaysia, the authorities have already made clear that they intend to hand Mr Misuari over to the authorities in Manila as soon as possible. Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad had said before the arrest that, although his country had provided support to the rebel group in the past in its bid for autonomy, Mr Misuari had not used his powers correctly. "Therefore, we no longer feel responsible to provide him with any assistance," he said.
In recent days there has been a surge in anti-Filipino sentiment among Taiwanese citizens. This is following the Filipino government's handling of an event that saw a government vessel from that country fire upon, and kill, fishermen aboard the Guang Da Xing No. 28 fishing boat (廣大興28號) – leading to a succession of attacks on Filipino workers in counties and governments around Taiwan.
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