- China’s envoy said Philippines was put on blacklist, because Beijing doesn’t know if its nationals will be safe from illegal activities in the country
- Philippine offshore gambling operators (Pogos) capitalised on the country’s liberal gaming laws to target customers in China, where gambling is banned
China has added the Philippines to its blacklist of tourist destinations due to illegal activities linked to the offshore gambling industry, a Senator said, citing Beijing’s envoy to Manila Huang Xilian.
The sector emerged in the Philippines in 2016 and grew exponentially, as operators capitalised on the country’s liberal gaming laws to target customers in China, where gambling is banned.
At their peak, Philippine offshore gambling operators, or Pogos, employed more than 300,000 Chinese workers, but the pandemic and higher taxes have forced many to operate elsewhere.
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‘Is it worth it?’: Philippines mulls ban on Pogos amid Chinese crime wave
“Ambassador Huang said that the Philippines now is part of a blacklist of tourist sites because they do not know if a tourist will be joining Pogo operations and they don’t know if their nationals who go to the Philippines will be safe from illegal activities being done by the triad, by the syndicates operating Pogos,” Juan Miguel Zubiri told a Senate hearing on Tuesday.
“They may also be kidnapped, mistaken as Pogo operators,” Zubiri said, adding envoy Huang revealed the information to him during a meeting on Monday, the Philippine Star reported.
Zubiri also blamed Pogo for a “significant drop” in Chinese tourists to the Philippines.
The Southeast Asian nation welcomed more than 1.7 million Chinese visitors in 2019, according to data from the tourism department. Arrivals from China fell to 22,236 this year as Beijing sticks to its strict zero-Covid policy.
Beijing has repeatedly warned Chinese nationals against working in Pogos in the Philippines that have brought an influx of crime, including kidnapping and murder.
China turns the tables on Philippines’ offshore gambling habit
The government last month said it will stop operations of 175 Pogos and deport about 40,000 Chinese workers as part of a crackdown on the industry, which delivers 190 billion pesos (US$3.2 billion) to the economy each year.
Meanwhile, a group representing the sector called on President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr to consider the economic impact of banning Pogos as he mulls banishing the businesses from the country.
“There are more than 23,000 Filipinos who will lose decent and well-paying jobs if the government shuts down legitimate Pogos and their service providers,” the Association of Service Providers and Pogos (ASPAP) spokesperson Mike Danganan said in a statement.
Danganan added his organisation was willing to cooperate with the government to stop criminal activities plaguing the industry. The justice department said it would liaise with ASPAP but the clampdown on Pogos will continue.
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This article originally appeared on the South China Morning Post (www.scmp.com), the leading news media reporting on China and Asia.
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