Philippines protests attack against boxer in Argentina

Feb 15, 2012, 8:08 GMT

Manila - The Philippines filed a diplomatic protest with Argentina over an attack against a Filipino boxer and his team by angry fans of his local opponent whom he defeated on the weekend.

Johnriel Casimero scored a 10th-round technical knockout against Luis Alberto Lazarte to take away his International Boxing Federation super-flyweight title Saturday in Buenos Aires.

The outcome angered Lazarte's fans who rushed the ring, punched Casimero and his team as well as hit them with plastic chairs. The fans also threw debris into the ring.

Raul Hernandez, spokesman for the Department of Foreign Affairs, said the Philippine embassy in Buenos Aires filed a protest with the Argentine Ministry of Foreign Affairs Monday.

The department also summoned the Argentine ambassador Wednesday to seek an explanation of his government action after the violence that injured Casimero's trainer, he said.

Senators on Wednesday demanded the recall of the Philippine ambassador in Argentina over the incident.

'We must condemn in the strongest possible terms this attack on a Filipino sports hero and the entire Philippine delegation,' Senator Vicente Sotto III said. 'An insult to the Filipino contingent is an insult to our country.'

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