China's South China Sea claims on Facebook met with 'shocking education' from Filipino netizens

China's state-run China News Service (CNS) attempted to assert its territorial claims in the South China Sea on Facebook, but the post quickly backfired, drawing fierce criticism from Filipino netizens.

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No matter how some people in the Philippines perform, it is absolutely impossible to change the historical and legal facts that relevant islands and reefs belong to China, nor is it possible to shake the firm determination of the Chinese military to defend national territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests.

The CNS post, shared on July 17, quoted Chinese Ministry of National Defense spokesperson Zhang Jiao, stating: "No matter how some people in the Philippines perform, it is absolutely impossible to change the historical and legal facts that relevant islands and reefs belong to China, nor is it possible to shake the firm determination of the Chinese military to defend national territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests."

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Don't even dream about it! Learn how to respect the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the West Philippine Sea belongs to the Filipinos!

However, the post was inundated with over 8,000 comments, predominantly from angry Filipino netizens. They challenged China's claims, urged adherence to the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), and questioned how China could claim islands far from its mainland but close to the Philippines and within its exclusive economic zone. Some comments used Tagalog and other local dialects to mock the CNS, suggesting they "continue to write your stories and feel good about yourselves."

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Use common sense to know that how can China own an island that is far from itself, but adjacent to the Philippines and within the Philippines' exclusive economic zone?

The online response also included references to sensitive historical events in China, such as "1989 Tiananmen Square," and sarcastically rephrased China's "nine-dash line" as the "nine-dash lie." The controversy was further fueled by a recent AI-generated video by Chinese state media that depicted Filipinos as monkeys, which the Philippines protested as racist. In response, some netizens declared, "We are not monkeys, we are crocodiles," referencing a symbol of strength in Filipino culture.

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Okay, okay, keep writing your stories and feel good about yourselves.