Image taken from Pixabay

Taipei, June 29 (CNA) The Manila Economic and Cultural Office (MECO) on Friday issued a statement lamenting a recent survey in which the Philippines was seen in an unfavorable light by respondents in Taiwan.

"While the result of the survey is truly lamentable, we will continue to strive in our efforts to promote cooperation between the Philippines and Taiwan," said MECO Chairman and Resident Representative Angelito Banayo.

The statement on Friday came in response to the results of a survey published by the Taiwanese Public Opinion Foundation (TPOF) on June 17, which listed the Philippines as the second most disliked country among Taiwanese, after North Korea.

The survey asked respondents their views of 10 countries or regions, and those seen most favorably were Singapore (liked by 88.2 percent of respondents), Japan (84.6 percent) and Canada (82.3 percent).

The three least popular countries were North Korea (disliked by 70.9 percent of respondents), the Philippines (52.9 percent) and China (43.9 percent).

In its statement, MECO said the Philippines and Taiwan are both active in people-to-people exchanges and economic cooperation through investment and mutual benefit agreements.

Some 150,000 Filipinos make up Taiwan's migrant labor force, contributing much to its manufacturing and fisheries sectors, it said.

Banayo said MECO was interested to know the demographics used in selecting the respondents, and what specific terms the survey used to evaluate the countries.

(By Elaine Hou and Ko Lin)
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