PH govt won't apologize to HK for hostage crisis: Aquino

Philippine President Benigno Aquino III said on Wednesday that the Philippine central government will not apologize to Hong Kong for the bloody Manila hostage crisis in 2010.

His remarks came a day after Manila City Council decided on Tuesday to make an official apology for the incident that resulted in the death of eight Hong Kong tourists.

In the annul forum of the Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines (FOCAP), Aquino reiterated that "in our culture, when we apologize, it is for a fault -- for an offense given by a person."

However, Aquino said, the tragedy was done by one individual "who is probably mentally unstable at that point in time," so it "should not be construed as an act of the entire country."

The individual that Aquino was talking about refers to the ousted senior inspector Rolando Mendoza who took hostage a tourist bus at the Quirino Grandstand in Manila City in 2010.

"We reiterated our utmost regret for what have happened, and offered again our condolences to all who have suffered," he said, while noted that it was not appropriate for him to apologize on behalf of the whole residents of the country for the act of an individual.

He also dismissed the notion of compensating the victims by the national government, but he said that he was open to the donation for them by the civilian groups in the Philippines.

The City Council of Manila on Tuesday passed a resolution taking it upon the city government to apologize to China, Hong Kong and families of victims for the hostage crisis.