THE weekend just past was not an ordinary one. Everyone reacted to a statement made by the Chinese ambassador, Huang Xilian, on the additional EDCA bases that the United States has been given access to. It took the Chinese ambassador to state an obvious fact that BBM, his defense secretary and his national security adviser forgot — the plight of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in Taiwan.

The Chinese ambassador was one of the keynote speakers at the 8th Manila Forum for Philippine-Chinese Relations last April 15, with the theme, 'Manage Differences, Jointly Uphold Peace and Stability in the Region.' Huang acknowledged differences and coexistence: 'Indeed, there are differences between China and the Philippines on the South China Sea issue. However, as neighbors across a narrow strip of water, relations between China and the Philippines are more defined by peaceful coexistence for over a thousand years and will continue to be so in the future. Friendship is always the main stream of our bilateral relations.' He further stated that 'we each have our respective claims and positions regarding the South China Sea. Differences thereof should be resolved by parties directly involved through dialogues and with mutual respect. That is why China is committed to strengthening dialogue mechanisms between us. Provocative actions or bringing in external forces will not help but further complicate the situation and cause more problems,putting regional peace and security at risk. We should learn from history and avoid repeating mistakes.'