Coronavirus song: Filipinos outraged over Chinese embassy’s South China Sea ‘propaganda video’

The Chinese embassy in Manila says it is a friendship song dedicated to health workers from both countries

But Filipino netizens say the music video’s imagery of a sea shared by China and the Philippines amounts to ‘propaganda’

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The song, Iisang Dagat, was released online on April 24. Photo: Screengrab/YouTube

Published: 6:51pm, 25 Apr 2020Updated: 1:19am, 26 Apr 2020

A music video the Chinese embassy in Manila says is aimed at celebrating a “new era of partnership” between the Philippines and China amid the coronavirus outbreak was lambasted on Saturday by outraged Filipinos.

The video of the song, Iisang Dagat (One Sea), was released on social media by the Chinese embassy on Friday.

Since then, it has received at least 65,000 dislike votes and angry reactions by Filipinos who criticised the video’s imagery of a sea shared by both countries, contrary to the situation in the disputed South China Sea.

According to the Chinese embassy, the song is “dedicated to those who contributed to our fight against the epidemic from both countries, especially the China Medical Expert Team [that visited] the Philippines”.

The lyrics were written by Chinese ambassador Huang Xilian, and performed by a group including a Chinese diplomat, the vice-governor of Camarines Sur, a Filipino-Chinese singer and an actor from China.

A part of the song reads: “You and I are in the same sea, your love keeps me company. I won’t let go of your hand. We have a bright future ahead.”

The song triggered a wave of anger among Filipinos online, with the hashtag #Chexitph trending on Saturday.