China is in contact with the Philippines in the wake of the hostage crisis on Aug. 23, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Jiang Yu said?in Beijing?Thursday.

The relevant departments of the Chinese central government and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government are communicating and cooperating with the Philippines, said Jiang.

An ex-policeman with a gun hijacked a tour bus carrying 21 Hong Kong tourists in Manila on Aug. 23. The incident ended with eight tourists dead and several others injured. The hostage-taker was killed in the police assault.

China has many times and through various channels urged the Philippines to investigate the incident and report the results of the investigation as soon as possible, Jiang said.

The Chinese government has dispatched a work team to Manila to deal with the incident's aftermath.

Guo Shaochun, a Chinese Foreign Ministry consul, and three other people from the ministry are in the team.

"We call for the Philippines to adopt practical measures to secure the lives and properties of Chinese citizens in the Philippines," said Jiang.