China says government not behind viral 'racist' monkey video
China said the racist AI-generated video depicting Filipinos as monkeys was not produced by its government. It also reiterated its rejection of the 2016 South China Sea arbitral ruling, claiming that the tribunal's award in favor of the Philippines was "null and void."
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian made the remarks during a recent press briefing after Bloomberg asked for his comment on the viral AI-generated video, which many Filipinos have described as "deeply offensive."
"About the video you mentioned, this is not an act of the government. I have no comment on that," he said.
He also reiterated China's stance on the 2016 arbitral ruling, which favored the Philippines and rejected China's historic nine-dash line claim in the West Philippine Sea.
"Let me stress that China’s position on the issue of 'South China Sea arbitration' is clear and consistent. The 'arbitration' is a political farce masqueraded as a legal process," he said.
"The so-called 'award' is illegal, null and void, and has no binding force," he added.
On July 12, 2016, an arbitral tribunal under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea unanimously ruled in favor of the Philippines in its dispute with China over the West Philippine Sea, saying that China's nine-dash line claim, recent land reclamation activities, and other activities in Philippine waters were unlawful.
China has continued to reject the 2016 arbitral ruling and maintain activities in areas claimed by the Philippines. In 2025, the National Maritime Council said that the continued presence of the Chinese coast guard, maritime militia, and other vessels within the country's territorial sea and exclusive economic zone violates Republic Act No. 12064, or the Philippine Maritime Zones Act, as well as international law, including the 1982 UNCLOS and the 2016 arbitral ruling affirming the Philippines' sovereign rights in the West Philippine Sea.
The Department of Foreign Affairs called on Chinese state-run media outlet China Daily to take down an AI-generated video portraying Filipinos as monkeys while attacking the 2016 arbitral ruling.
The agency denounced the content as "racist" and "deeply offensive" and lodged a diplomatic protest over what it described as China Daily's "dehumanizing and racist" depiction of Filipinos in the video and related editorial cartoons.
