Philippines Revisits Perils of US Military Machine
Published in The Universe
(December 08, 2002)
There was a small but fierce
demonstration last week before the heavily fortified US embassy in Manila to
protest the secret signing of a logistical agreement between the United
States and the Philippine Government. The agreement binds the Philippines to
a "cooperative effort" in providing supplies to the United States In effect
it allows the Philippines to be a staging area for US ammunition and weapons
of mass destruction. It commits the Philippine armed forces to cooperate
with US troops in the Philippines or outside it. On everyone’s mind is the
pending war that George W. Bush is threatening to unleash on Iraq.
This agreement forged an
designed away from public debate was widely seen as granting the US military
the right to set up storage facilities here and the Philippines to act as a
staging and logistics supply area using Philippine Armed forces facilities.
Congressman Abraham Mitra said "it appears that we have become the US
militaries Wal-Mart in the Far East' referring to the US super store chain.
Another critic of a national organization said " the agreement make us
"Uncle Sams Vulcanizing shop". Others say it makes the Filipinos mercenaries
of the US forces. The Visiting Forces agreement, allows US warplanes and
ships free access to ports and airfields. The new agreement legitimizes the
return of US military and their weapons of war something many oppose as they
did in the past.
The signing came almost on the
day ten years ago, on November 24, 1992 when the last US Navy battle ship ,
the nuclear powered USS Bellue Wood steamed out of Subic Bay into the sunset
marking the end of 93 years of US military presence on Philippine soil.
The military bases provided
logistical support for the wars in Korea, Vietnam and the Gulf and were seen
as an infringement of Philippine sovereignty. They caused social evils such
as the sexual exploitation of women and children, the spread of HIV Aids ,
abortion, poverty and political interference. The Catholic Church made it
know that it was opposed the social and moral evils caused by the bases but
make no statement against them. The national Council of churches was
outspoken against them.
I was there on the pier that
final day as the last ramp was pulled up. About fifty bar girls were bused
to the wharf to support the defeated mayor of Olongapo who wept as the last
marine saluted smartly and raised the gangplank. I felt a surge of pride in
the PREDA team of human rights workers who were responsible in a small way
for bringing about that enormous historical event.
In 1983 Alex Hermoso, the
programme director of PREDA Children Rights center discovered, with me, a
dirty secret covered up by the local city administration and the US Navy
admiral. a Child prostitution syndicate was selling Filipino children as
young as nine to the US Navy paedophiles . We launched a "close the bases",
campaign and proposed the bases be converted into industrial estates and
economic business parks. Five Years later in 1988 a navy undercover
investigation discovered even worse. They found children as young as four
and six were being offered for sex to undercover detectives posing as sex
tourists. We redoubled our efforts despite the attempts of the authorities
to stop the camping and close us down. Several other anti-base groups had
emerged by this time and they organized a coalition against the bases of
which we were a part.
Eventually a new treaty extending the bases was rejected by the
senate. Today they are successful industrial estates providing fifty
thousand Filipino with dignified work and good wages. It was truly a miracle
and God's hand was seen moving in mysterious ways. It was a sign that small
efforts by little people of faith can have great results. Nothing is
impossible with God, we only have to trust and work on for justice.
Letters to PREDA Children
P.O. Box 284
Sligo Post Office
Sligo, Ireland.
