China’s embassy in the Philippines issued a statement on Wednesday, expressing satisfaction with the law enforcement cooperation between China and the Philippines regarding cross-border gambling crackdowns.
The statement was in both Chinese and English, noting that ‘so far this year, the Chinese side has assisted the Philippine side in cracking down on three illegal offshore gambling parks (POGOs) and promptly repatriating nearly 400 Chinese citizens back to China after identity verification. Relevant agencies from both sides expressed satisfaction with the results of law enforcement cooperation.’
‘The law enforcement agencies of China and the Philippines have maintained good communication and coordination, jointly carrying out operations to severely crack down on cross-border gambling, telecommunications, and online fraud with tangible results.’
China’s embassy in the Philippines stresses that the Chinese government has always firmly opposed and cracked down on all forms of gambling. ‘According to Chinese laws, any form of gambling, including online gambling and overseas gambling by Chinese citizens, is illegal.’
The embassy points out that ‘crimes induced by online gambling harm not only China’s interests and China-Philippine relations but also the interests of the Philippines.’
‘It was discovered during the law enforcement cooperation that some illegal offshore gaming employees abused Philippine judicial procedures by fabricating cases in the Philippines to avoid repatriation.’
‘China is willing to further cooperate with the Philippines in dealing with such situations to ensure laws are enforced and justice served. Meanwhile, China calls on the Philippines to take strong measures to crack down on crimes related to POGOs and root out the social ills in a sweeping manner.’
The Chinese Embassy in the Philippines promises that it will continue to ‘strengthen communication and cooperation’ with the Philippine government and law enforcement agencies in this regard and jointly handle repatriation, among other related issues.
