Albert del Rosario, the Philippines ’ former foreign secretary turned away from Hong Kong last week while using a diplomatic passport, has defended his use of it and says he was singled out because he was a signatory to a “crimes against humanity” international lawsuit against China and its leaders. “It’s clear it was in retaliation for that [legal]action,” he told a morning news programme in the Philippines on Thursday. In March, Del Rosario and former ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales sued Chinese President Xi Jinping and other Chinese officials at the International Criminal Court for “atrocious actions in the South China Sea and within Philippine territory”. According to Dr Dai Fan, vice dean of Guangzhou-based Jinan University’s school of international studies, del Rosario’s ejection was to his knowledge the first time a high-ranking foreign official had been treated in this manner. Former Philippine diplomat Albert Del Rosario, who criticised China, back in Manila after Hong Kong deportation “I haven’t heard of an incident like this before, but I think it may not be the last,” he said, adding that “we should understand this under the background of present United States-China relations ”. Dai, who emphasised that he was providing his opinion and not speaking for the Chinese government, said del Rosario had been ejected because “he is well known for his anti-China attitudes … he pushed the arbitration case [on the South China Sea ] in 2013, and after he left his office he promoted a series of anti-China activities”. The academic noted that del Rosario was “ very close with the US and it is possible that the US government supports him in many events. It is the key point.” China believes the US is everywhere … but that is not the reason del Rosario was deported Jose Antonio Custodio But defence analyst Jose Antonio Custodio – senior fellow at Manila-based think tank Institute for Policy, Strategy and Development Studies – said Beijing’s fear of Washington was not the main issue. “China believes the US is everywhere, it believes the US is influencing the Hong Kong pro-democracy rallies, but that is not the reason del Rosario was deported,” he said. “The issue here is the case that del Rosario and Carpio-Morales filed against Xi Jinping, it’s really that act of filing a case that’s totally unacceptable. “Remember this is a country that banned the images of Winnie the Pooh [over their resemblance to Xi]. So the protection of Xi’s image is paramount.” Dai said he did not think relations between Hong Kong and the Philippines would be influenced by the incident, “just like the Hong Kong hostage incident” – referring to the 2010 hijacking of a tour bus in Manila that saw eight Hongkongers killed. “It may impact relations in the short term but for the long term it’s not a problem. There are so many [Filipino] workers in Hong Kong. Besides, I guess it is the mainland government that pressed Hong Kong to make such a decision.” [The del Rosario incident] may impact relations in the short term but for the long term it’s not a problem Dai Fan Custodio agreed, saying it would not affect Manila’s relations with China or Hong Kong “as long as [Rodrigo] Duterte is president”. A similar incident last month saw Carpio-Morales stopped at Hong Kong International Airport and held for three hours while she was on a family holiday. She decided to fly home immediately after she was released. Custodio said del Rosario and Carpio-Morales could rule out going back to Hong Kong. “They will always be banned. If you take legal action against Xi that’s unacceptable.” At the same time, the defence analyst warned that if Hong Kong were to turn back other people “that could backfire. They’re trying to show they’re also concerned about Beijing’s security interests but it could have repercussions for their image.” ‘China’s not to be trusted’: Philippines’ del Rosario wades into row over South China Sea sinking Del Rosario also told reporters the diplomatic passport he was using “bears a seal of the republic [of the Philippines]. To disrespect the bearer is to disrespect the republic.” He also called for action on the part of the Philippine government – but it is unlikely there will be any. Instead, President Rodrigo Duterte criticised del Rosario for his choice of travel document. “When you are no longer an employee of government, you have no business using a government diplomatic passport,” the president on Wednesday said in a speech. Del Rosario had used the passport for a business trip in Hong Kong, where he planned to attend a board meeting of the Indonesian-owned investment holding company First Pacific, which is listed in the city. The Philippine foreign affairs ministry traditionally issued diplomatic passports as a courtesy to retired secretaries, undersecretaries and ambassadors. According to retired ambassador Victoria Bataclan, once the consul general to Hong Kong, the practice has been going on “since time immemorial”. Following del Rosario’s deportation, the Department of Foreign Affairs announced it would cease issuing “courtesy” diplomatic passports and revoked all such documents. The former foreign secretary said in a statement that this action was “illegal” and “unlawful” because it had to go through congress first. It’s more than a matter of courtesy, it’s some sort of reward for service to the country Lauro Baja on the Philippines’ diplomatic passports As for Duterte’s criticism, del Rosario on Thursday told local media that “there is no qualification as to how you should use [the diplomatic passport]”. Ex-officials criticise Duterte administration’s soft approach towards China, as Philippine foreign ministry cancels diplomatic passports Retired ambassador Lauro Baja, a two-time president of the United Nations Security Council, told the South China Morning Post that “diplomatic passports can be used for personal reasons”. He was issued one when he retired in 2007. “Most of the ambassadors accredited to a post have been given the privilege of diplomatic passports [upon retirement], though we do not ask for it,” he said. “It’s more than a matter of courtesy, it’s some sort of reward for service to the country.” Baja said using a diplomatic passport required the holder to have it “revalidated” for each and every trip. Del Rosario last week told reporters he had not only revalidated his passport, he had also informed the chief of staff of foreign secretary Teodoro Locsin Jnr about his trip. In turn, del Rosario said, the foreign office alerted the consul general in Hong Kong, who told authorities there about his impending arrival.