MANILA; The Philippines on Monday defended its decision to deport 14 Taiwanese suspected fraudsters to China, while expressing hope the incident would not hurt relations with Taiwan.Philippine authorities arrested the Taiwanese group, along with 10 Chinese nationals, in December for allegedly swindling $20 million in an international scam targeting mainland Chinese, and last week deported them to the mainland.
The move infuriated Taiwan, which said the Taiwanese should have faced justice at home on the self-ruled island rather than in China. Taiwan threatened to review its exchanges with the Philippines over the incident.But the office which handles Philippine relations with Taiwan said authorities had acted appropriately.
"In view of the existence of arrest warrants in China, the (Philippine) Department of Justice deported all 24 suspects to face prosecution in China," the Manila Economic and Cultural Office said in a statement."These actions were taken considering that all the victims are Chinese, all the accomplices are Chinese and the results can best be settled in China," the statement said, quoting Justice Secretary Leila de Lima.
China and Taiwan have been ruled separately since the end of a civil war in 1949, but China still considers the island part of its territory.While the Philippines recognises China and has no official relations with Taiwan, it has been seeking to boost trade ties with the island.
The Manila Economic and Cultural Office said it hoped that the deportations would not affect the "warmth and kinship" between Filipinos and Taiwanese."We wish to assure you that the Philippines will continue to welcome Taiwanese friends and provide them with the protection of their rights as law-abiding visitors," the statement said.
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