Philippine President Aquino angers Manila bus siege victims' relatives with legal liability comments

Relatives of Hongkongers killed in the Manila hostage crisis have slammed Philippine President Benigno Aquino as "irresponsible" after he again refused to apologise for the tragedy.

They also urged the Hong Kong government to consider tougher sanctions after it ended visa-free access for Philippine diplomats and officials to press for an apology and compensation for the victims.

Aquino fuelled the row in a New York Times interview, in which he said there would be no apology for the killing of eight Hongkongers by sacked policeman Rolando Mendoza and a botched rescue operation, despite the "phase one" sanctions that took effect yesterday.

Aquino told the Times that any apology risked creating a legal liability. He also noted that China had not paid compensation for the death of Filipinos in episodes on its territory.

In a separate statement, the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs called on Hong Kong "to be sober and to reflect rationally on this issue".

But Tse Chi-hang, brother of slain tour guide Masa Tse Ting-chunn, said of Aquino's reaction: "It is very disappointing. It is very irresponsible for [Aquino] to try to negate the responsibility his government should bear for the incident. The Hong Kong government should press harder and consider tougher measures."

However, Executive Council member Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee, a strong advocate of sanctions, called for patience and suggested the picture could change when Aquino left office in 2016.