Lonely Planet catches ire of Filipino netizens for video saying Chinese built Banaue Rice Terraces 

The Banaue Rice Terraces. (Photo: Pixabay)
The Banaue Rice Terraces. (Photo: Pixabay)

Filipinos never fail to express their Filipino pride online, but this nationalism can get really intense too.

Things got awkward for travel guide Lonely Planet when Filipinos noticed that they credited the Philippine landmark Banaue Rice Terraces to the Chinese in a video posted on Facebook yesterday.

It has since been taken down but not before netizens took screenshots of and shared their ire online. Twitter user @AltPCOOSec, a parody account of Presidential Communications Operations Office Secretary Martin Andanar, went as far as tagging Lonely Planet in his tweet.

“Dear @lonelyplanet, the Banaue Rice Terraces were built by Filipino indigenous people, not by the Chinese,” he said.

https://twitter.com/AltPCOOSec/status/1112130704274382848

Based on the screenshots, the video said: “These mud-walled terraces were first built around 2000 years ago by the Chinese.”

Screenshot: @AltPCOOSec Twitter.
Screenshot: @AltPCOOSec Twitter.

Lonely Planet’s website says that the terraces were “introduced around 2000 years ago by the Chinese” but acknowledged that it was built by the Ifugao people.

Screenshot: Lonely Planet website.
Screenshot: Lonely Planet website.

The Banaue Rice Terraces is one of the most well-known landmarks in the Philippines. The terraces were carved into the mountains of the Ifugao province in northern Luzon and the landmark is a symbol of bayanihan, or the spirit of coming together.

Filipinos take pride in it and call it the “Eighth Wonder of the World.” Many even went crazy when the Banaue Rice Terraces was featured in Avengers: Infinity War, no matter how quick the shot is.

So naturally, Filipinos did not like that it was credited to the Chinese, especially amid the political climate.

President Rodrigo Duterte has been slammed for his warming relations with China and his lackluster defense of the disputed West Philippine Sea. There’s also an ongoing controversy about the influx of Chinese workers in the Philippines.

“So China wants to take the Banaue Rice Terraces too?” @lorenzboni said.

https://twitter.com/lorenzboni/status/1112472741867732992

@rennoahyhanne said she wants an apology from Lonely Planet.

“What an insult to our ancestors @lonelyplanet !!! Banaue Rice Terraces wasn’t made by the Chinese!!! We demand a public apology!!!” her tweet reads.

https://twitter.com/rennoahyhanne/status/1112411982714437632

@libraryhoe also asked for a correction.

“YOU’VE GOT AN ERROR IN YOUR RESEARCH STUDIES. The Chinese did not build the Banaue Rice Terraces. The Ifugaos are responsible for creating them all on their own. Correct your errors, please. It’s annoying to see my fellow Filipinos’ culture being discredited,” the tweet reads.

Lonely Planet has replied to the tweet this morning and said that they will look into it but has not issued a statement regarding the issue.

As of this article’s posting, the said video is no longer in Lonely Planet’s Facebook page.



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