CHINESE President Xi Jinping in his state visit here tried to connect Chinese legacy with the Philippines by saying Jose Rizal has Chinese ancestry. Comedian Ethel Booba refutes that, saying Rizal is actually Korean, because the national hero is now called Rizal Park.
There’s so much ado this month about China and Korea invading our shores, our markets and now even the language that we speak. But let’s go back to that statement by Xi.
There’s a Cebuano term for that thing called “mamarente,” from the root word “parente” or relative. This is when people try to trace one another’s relative another person to see if they are connected by blood.
If that is the case, my Chinese ancestry can be linked to Rizal. A copy of Rizal’s Chinese lineage can be found actually in the Fil-Chinese section in Museo Dabawenyo. Rizal’s great grandfather, Domingo Lamco, has the surbname Cue or Cua. This belongs to the same Cua and Chua family association where my father’s lineage belongs.
But that’s as far as I can claim my connection with Rizal. Because, not like President Xi, I don’t have billions of pesos to make claim for that.
Let’s be honest, Xi’s “mamarente” tactics cannot overshadow the bigger picture that this modern China, a capitalist country posturing as communist, is pouring billions of pesos in loans for the government’s Build Build Build infrastructure program. With government’s need for 8.4 trillion pesos, China has enough capital to pour in here as official aid.
But this comes with a price. IBON Foundation notes that official aid and loans demand collateral. The example of Sri Lanka shows how it was forced to lease its Hambantota Port for 99 years to a Chinese company when it was unable to repay its debt to China.
There are concerns raised that the price of such loans is to ease the West Philippines Sea to Chinese maritime forces, and this contributes to China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) to ease China’s entry of infrastructure and investments in Asia and even across Europe and America.
A century ago, American government called us “little brown brother”. And President Duterte slammed the Americans as imperialists. Now, Xi says we share the same history, and Duterte accepts this act of friendship and connection. Duterte could have learned from Malaysian Prime Minister Mahatir to realize that the Chinese is molding “a new version of colonialism” by expanding capital and investments?
What is at stake is not shared histories, but our history and identity eroded. As Chinese marines bully our fisherfolk and media covering their intrusions. As Chinese tourists and new migrants display arrogance on staff workers of hotels and malls. But beyond that, we lose more than gain something in this kind of connection.