Once again, the law-abiding members of the Chinese-Filipino community in this country were so shaken by the recent news of Chinese nationals perpetrating crimes against somebody that could well be considered as compatriot.
I am specifically referring to the reported arrest of three Chinese suspects who abducted a Chinese-Filipino businessman.
The victim, later identified as businessman Mario Sy Uy, was said to have been kidnapped last March 18 and the suspects demanded ransom money in exchange for his release.
The negotiations progressed when the kidnappers reportedly sent a video of the victim being tortured.
Authorities said that about P1 million was demanded by the suspects. The said amount was to be sent via two banks and through a mobile wallet app.
The victim’s family deposited half of the amount demanded as ransom money, in a bank located somewhere in Paranaque City.
Surprisingly, the three Chinese nationals identified as Bei Huimin, 30; Jielong Shen, 26, and Sun XiaoHui, 26, were so brazen that they themselves decided to withdraw the money from the said bank.
It was then that the police Anti-Kidnapping Group (AKG) was able to effect their arrest and then brought them to the AKG headquarters for proper disposition.
Following this, the AKG also arrested the owner of the bank account through which the ransom money was coursed through.
He was identified as Hong Puc Le, 33, a Vietnamese and was nabbed at a mall in Bonifacio Global City, Taguig after his bank account was used to receive the P560,000 ransom deposited by the family of Uy.
Uy, as it turned out, was kidnapped in Quezon City and then brought to a subdivision in Barangay Navarro in Gen. Trias, Cavite,.
There, he was tortured, according to Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission executive director Gilbert Cruz.
Later, on March 22, the victim’s body was found by students dumped in a grassy area of the Saddle and Leisure Park in Tanza, Cavite.
This dastardly crime and its perpetrators are being condemned by the decent, peace-loving and law-abiding members of the Chinese-Filipino community.
The strong reaction is understandable.
Achieving the kind of status and respect that the Chinoy community enjoys nowadays is no walk in the park.
It took a lot of effort, hard work and long years to finally fit in and more importantly, earn esteem and respect from Filipinos.
News of such magnitude and impact thus tends to negate all the gains that Chinoys have painstakingly worked on over all these years.
I hope that the public will not make a sweeping generalization to the point of including Chinese-Filipinos.
After all, those engaging in such dastardly acts are Chinese nationals who do not hail from this country.
I can state with certainty that the Chinoys who have settled in the Philippines are decent and sticklers for all rules and laws governing the country and won’t countenance any such illicit activities most specially grisly crimes.
In fact, they join the ranks of those condemning criminal elements, Chinese or not.
The delineation between Chinese-Filipinos and those committing crimes who only happen to be of Chinese descent, must be clearly drawn, in so far as the bar of public opinion is concerned and in the spirit of fairness.
***
(Comments and suggestions may be emailed to peoplestonightonline@gmail.com.)
