The Philippine president vowed Thursday to punish authorities who bungled a bus hostage crisis that killed eight Hong Kong tourists, toughening his stance after Asian powerhouse China expressed outrage and political rivals pummeled him with criticism.
The nearly 12-hour hostage drama at a historic Manila park stunned even this violence-prone Southeast Asian nation and delivered the first major crisis to President Benigno Aquino III less than two months into his six-year term.
Also on Thursday, the Philippine Senate began an inquiry into the hostage fiasco.
"Someone failed. Someone will pay," Aquino said during a speech before students and faculty at a suburban university. He called the carnage "ghastly" and admitted there were "many failures."
It was his strongest statement since a pre-dawn news conference hours after the end of the crisis when he told reporters, who asked if some police officials will be fired, that "it's unfair to prejudge them."
"My opinion might sway the (investigating) panel and hamper their efforts of ferreting out the truth," he said then.
In Beijing, China's Foreign Ministry pressed Manila to "complete the investigation of the matter as soon as possible."
Philippine officials have acknowledged the economic backlash on the Philippines after Hong Kong authorities urged its citizens not to travel to the country.
About 140,000 Hong Kong tourists visit the Philippines yearly. National carrier Philippine Airlines said in a statement that at least 558 tourists from Hong Kong and China have cancelled their bookings.
Concerns also were raised about the fate and safety of more than 100,000 Filipinos working in Hong Kong, mostly as maids, who contributed to the US$17.3 billion sent home in 2009 by about 9 million overseas Filipinos - remittances that help keep the economy afloat.
At the Senate investigation, Manila police chief Rodolfo Magtibay said he gave the order to assault the bus carrying a Hong Kong tour guide and 20 tourists after hearing shots following a breakdown in the negotiations with the hostage-taker, former police officer Rolando Mendoza.
Mendoza, who had been dismissed and was demanding reinstatement, released several children and elderly hostages early on, but later opened fire on the remaining hostages. Eight people were killed before a police sniper took him out.
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