MANILA, Philippines - For the Chinese, could the emotional and psychological impact of an incident like the bloody hostage drama exactly a week ago be compared to the 9/11 terrorist attacks against the United States?

Filipino-Chinese civil rights activist Teresita Ang-See said the Chinese do not easily forget an incident like that which happened last August 23, especially if it was something that could have otherwise been prevented.

A discharged police officer, Rolando Mendoza, took hostage several tourists inside a bus. After the 12-hour ordeal, 8 Hong Kong tourists and the gunman himself were killed.

Some experts called the police operations a failure, triggering diplomatic strains between the country and the Hong Kong and Chinese governments.

Already, some Filipinos in Hong Kong, mostly working as domestic helpers, are allegedly feeling the backlash. The Hong Kong government has already called on its people for sobriety.

Asked if the effect of the hostage crisis has the same magnitude as the 9/11 attacks, Ang-See said “para sa kanila…yung 9/11 terrorist attack, hindi kayang pigilan. [Yung hostage], kaya sanang i-prevent. Kaya ganun ang galit. Huwag natin sila husgahan sa kailangan nilang gawin. Tanggapin natin na malaki ang backlash sa atin.”

(For them, the 9/11 terrorist attack could not be prevented but the hostage-taking could have been. That is why there is anger. We can't judge them for what they are doing, We must accept that there will be a backlash against us.)

On Sunday, tens of thousands of Hong Kong crowds flocked to Victoria Park to show their outrage and grief over the bus tragedy.

It was not an ordinary day in Hong Kong, as both members of pro-Beijing and pro-democracy political parties banded together to fight for a common cause—that the Philippine government provide immediate justice for the victims.

Chinese-Filipinos in the middle of brouhaha

Ang-See said the Chinese-Filipino community is now in the middle of it all, helpless to even take sides.

In fact, during the send-off of the victims last week, she said “ako ang nag-absorb ng mga pagmumura nila.” She attended the send-off in an effort to pacify the grieving families of the victims.
Filipinos, on the other hand, easily recover from tragedies.

“Madali tayo makalimot, dahil may Diyos tayo…We just say ‘It’s God’s will.’…At sa atin, marami na tayong dinaanang trahedya. It was one of the unfortunate tragedies,” she said.

(It's easy for us to forget because we look to God. We just say 'It's God's will. And we've been through so many tragedies.)

She cited, for example, the execution of Flor Contemplacion in Singapore because of murder charges.

The incident caused many Filipinos to show their outrage against both the Philippine and Singaporean governments over the abuse they have received from their foreign employers.

She said the issue has been forgotten by many.

Ang-See said that while the nation moves forward, “ipakita natin na nalulungkot tayo, na galit tayo. Ang pinaka-frontliners natin ay ang mga domestic helpers sa Hong Kong…[They can prove] na maganda ang ipinapakita nila sa mga amo nila, na masisipag ang mga Pinoy.”

(We have to show that we are sad, that we are angry. Our frontliners are the domestic helpers in Hong Kong. They can prove that they treat their employers well, that Filipinos are hardworking.)