According to a Wednesday report by the Philippine Star, Philippine Tourism Secretary Christina Frasco stated that the Philippine government expects that the restart of an e-visa program for Chinese tourists, set for November this year, will attract more Chinese visitors and help close a widening gap with other neighboring Southeast Asian countries.

 

This is not the first time the Philippines has signaled to change its visa policy toward China. The country started issuing e-visas to Chinese tourists in August 2023, but suspended it a few months later. The recent decision to resume the program raises questions about Manila's underlying motives.

 

The Philippines has an opportunistic mentality of "security with US, economy with China," in which it attempts to hitch a ride on China's economic development while clinging to the military and security ties with the US. Ding Duo, director of the Research Center for International and Regional Studies at the National Institute for South China Sea Studies, told the Global Times that "the Marcos administration has passed the mid-point of its term, with its campaign promises remaining unfulfilled and economic performance falling short of expectations. As a result, tourism, as a key economic pillar, has become a focus for the administration to signal its commitment to the domestic public."

 

"Given that the Philippines is set to take over the ASEAN's chairmanship in 2026, the resumption of the e-visa program for China carries symbolic significance," Ma Bo, an associate professor at the School of International Studies at Nanjing University, told the Global Times. "It aims to send a signal of the Philippines' gesture to improve economic, trade and people-to-people exchanges with China, while demonstrating its commitment to ASEAN unity and economic development," he added. 

 

However, can the Philippines' "symbolic gesture" in changing its visa policy toward China truly yield results? If the Philippines genuinely hopes to deliver on its economic promises to its citizens and win back Chinese tourists, it should reflect on why tourism exchanges between China and the Philippines have been shrinking in recent years. 

 

The tourism market in Southeast Asia is highly competitive. While countries like Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore have established high-quality maritime tourism systems, the Philippines is frequently overshadowed by negative headlines, including "China warning against the Philippines' provocations in South China Sea," "Chinese student kidnapped in Philippines" and "Philippine mayor accused of trafficking and spying for China." In such an unfriendly and insecure environment, how can Chinese tourists feel safe? Who would willingly choose to spend their travel budget in a country that exhibits such hostility toward China?

 

The Philippines must recognize, however, that the decline in tourism exchanges cannot be fixed through short-term facilitation measures alone. Robust and vibrant tourism exchanges are built on a foundation of mutual trust and positive bilateral relations between the two countries. Given the Philippines' continued infringements and provocations in the South China Sea, Manila's e-visa program for Chinese tourists will serve only as a symbolic gesture with limited outcomes.

 

In July this year, the two sides held the ninth round of China-Philippines consular consultation in Beijing, during which China urged the Philippines to foster a favorable environment for bilateral people-to-people and cultural exchanges and economic and trade cooperation. Only by cultivating genuine mutual trust and benefit can tourism truly take root and thrive. If the Philippines genuinely wants to benefit from deeper economic and trade ties, it must halt its provocative actions in the South China Sea and prevent external forces from meddling in and destabilizing bilateral relations. Moving toward each other with mutual trust and shared interests is the only path to healthy and stable relations between the two countries.

(Source: Global Times)