Cover Story: Chinese Gamble With Their Lives in the Philippines Amid Waves of Kidnappings

Labeled by international media as the “kidnapping capital of the world” in the 1990s, Manila today is plagued by trans-national criminal networks that are now increasingly targeting visiting Chinese b

It was in the 1990s when Manila was labeled by international media as the “kidnapping capital of the world,” where violent organized crime gangs and guerilla groups seeking an easy payday or political goals would snatch people off the streets and hold them for ransom.

In the intervening years, this underworld industry has only grown more expansive and sophisticated in the Philippines capital and across the country, aided by nebulous cross-border networks of accomplices and the latest technology. In previous years, local Chinese Filipinos were the prime targets. Today, it’s nationals from the People’s Republic of China that are increasingly becoming the preferred victims.

While it is difficult to compile cross-national statistics on kidnapping, most analyses put the Philippines in the top 10% of the worst countries, according to a 2021 annual report by the Philippine Strategic Associates. In keeping with previously established trends, foreign victims were mostly of Chinese ethnicity or ancestry, with 44 Chinese nationals and one Malaysian, representing 38% of the total of foreign victims, said the report.

The Philippines’ vast gambling industry, with revenues worth $5 billion last year making it the biggest in Asia, coupled with its sparsely populated islands, remote villages and a lengthy judicial process, creates an environment conducive to criminal activity. A propensity for victims to stay silent make Chinese individuals particularly vulnerable targets.

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