Hong Kong imposes first sanctions on the Philippines

Measures prompted by Manila's refusal to apologize for the 2010 hostage crisisBy Kahon Chan in Hong Kongkahon@chinadailyhk.儲存com The Hong Kong government on Wednesday imposed its first sanctions on the Philippines — citing its concern over the country's refusal to officially apologize for the 2010 Manila hostage crisis.The measures mean diplomatic and official passport holders from the Philippines will now have to apply for a visa to enter Hong Kong from Feb 5.These are Hong Kong's first-ever sanctions applied to a country. Announcing the sanctions on Wednesday, Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying said the sanctions are supported by not only the central government, but also survivors and families of the victims of the Manila hostage crisis.The tragedy occurred when eight Hong Kong tourists were killed after a 10-hour siege of their tourist coach in Manila on Aug 23, 2010. After an investigation found the rescue efforts were poorly planned and executed, survivors demanded the Philippine government make a formal apology.Leung first presented these demands directly to Philippine President Benigno Aquino III during an APEC meeting in Bali, Indonesia, last October. About a month later, Leung fixed a one-month deadline for his demands to be met.Although Manila has since made "positive" suggestions on three of the four demands, such as compensation, Leung said the latest stance by Manila on Monday regarding the apology was "unacceptable"."Despite many rounds of discussion, there remains a substantive difference between us on this most important demand," Leung said. He did not elaborate, but earlier reports suggest Aquino is re迷你倉uctant to apologize "on behalf of the country".Ending visa-free access permission for Philippine diplomats and officials will have no impact on most Philippine visitors. Only about 700 Filipinos, out of a total of 705,319 who came to Hong Kong in 2013, entered the city with diplomatic or official passports.Other Philippine passport holders will still enjoy a visa-free stay in Hong Kong for up to 14 days after Feb 5.Leung said the measures were "just and justified". He said he still hopes further progress can be made. "As good progress had been made with regard to the three of the four demands, we believe with further effort, a resolution on the final demand could also be made."No deadline was set along with the first sanctions, but Leung said Hong Kong has not ruled out further measures.Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said on Wednesday the central government supported efforts made by Hong Kong to resolve the Manila hostage crisis. She said the issue was very important to all Chinese people."We urge the Philippines to face squarely the concerns of the victims and their families, to show sincerity and solve the relevant issues at an early date," Hua said after a press conference.The Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs did not comment on Wednesday. Diego Cagahastian, a spokesman for the Manila city government, expressed concern at the impact the sanctions might have on Hong Kong's relations with the Philippines.But Tse Chi-kin, elder brother of deceased tour guide Masa Tse, said the sanctions were a "breakthrough". He told Now TV the families hope the impact on ordinary people will be kept to a minimum.self storage