Deng Yuanqing — RICHARD A. REYES
The Chinese government on Wednesday took issue with a recent announcement by Philippine authorities about the arrest of a Chinese national suspected of working as a spy for Beijing.
“We hope the Philippines will stick to the facts, stop shadow-chasing, stop peddling the so-called ‘Chinese spy,’ and earnestly protect the lawful rights and interests of Chinese nationals in the Philippines,” said Mao Ning, spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA).
play slots Article continues after this advertisement“The Chinese government, as always, asks Chinese nationals overseas to abide by local laws and regulations,” Mao said during the ministry’s regular press briefing in Beijing.
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DFA to help in probeThe NBI said the three suspects engaged in espionage, surveillance, and reconnaissance operations by visiting and mapping several police and military headquarters, national and local government buildings, and power installations in Luzon, including the Malampaya onshore gas plant in Batangas.
Article continues after this advertisementDeng was allegedly part of a six-member group posing as developers of autonomous vehicles. Officials then described him as a software engineer who graduated from the People’s Liberation Army University in Nanjing and who had been in the country for five years serving as a “sleeper agent.”
The Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) went up by 0.22 percent to 7,326.41 while All Shares also rose 0.24 percent to 4,024.72.
While a much-anticipated briefing on Saturday failed to deliver a hoped-for overall figure on stimulus, Lan Fo’an did set out plans to boost the beleaguered property sector, ramp up borrowing, and work to get banks lending more.
Article continues after this advertisementOn Thursday, a day after Mao’s remarks, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) expressed its readiness to help in the investigation.
Article continues after this advertisement“In accordance with its mandate to help protect national security, the Department takes any indication of espionage operations by foreign nationals seriously and stands ready to support the Department of Justice, the National Bureau of Investigation, the Armed Forces of the Philippines, and other relevant government agencies as they undertake their respective mandates in accordance with the law,” the DFA said in a statement.
The Bureau of Immigration (BI) also disclosed new details about Deng: That the 39-year-old Chinese national has been married to a Filipino woman, and he has been traveling in and out of the country since 2015—or years earlier than the NBI’s reckoning.
Article continues after this advertisementThe BI said it would start deportation proceedings against the Chinese suspect only when the cases against him had been resolved.
Deng, Besa, and Fernandez have been charged with espionage and violation of the anti-cybercrime law, the NBI said.
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