Darkside of the Philippines

Like most places in the world, there is a dark side to the Philippines. It’s a place of appalling poverty and injustice, a blighted land where too many politicians, businessmen, religious leaders and ordinary citizens allow greed and self-interest to triumph over rule of law, justice and the common good.

The fact that the country is scattered across thousands of islands has stunted social, economic and political development. So has the legacy of colonialism — more than three centuries of Spanish domination, followed by 47 years of American rule. The Philippines became a nominally independent nation only in 1946, so its institutions remain weak and fragile, and its sense of national identity is still embryonic.

                                                                                        
                                                                             Gregg Jones

                                                                             author: Honor in the Dust

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The following is an excerpt from The New York Times book review by Candice Millard on Gregg Jones’ Honor In the Dust:

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Jones, who was once a correspondent in Manila and whose first book, “Red Revolution,” took readers inside the New People’s Army, has a thorough understanding of the Philippines. But it is on the United States that “Honor in the Dust” casts the brightest, and at times harshest, light. After America first entered the Philippines in 1898, during the course of the Spanish-­American War, President William McKinley insisted that it was the Filipinos’ “liberty and not our power, their welfare and not our gain, we are seeking to enhance.” The American people, however, flush with victory, had started to dream of expansion, even empire, and pressure mounted on McKinley not just to free Spanish colonies but also to lay claim to them. By 1900, an election year, McKinley had begun to give in, arguing that “territory sometimes comes to us when we go to war in a holy cause.” Addressing a campaign crowd in Nebraska, he asked, “Shall we deny to ourselves what the rest of the world so freely and justly accords to us?” The answer, as he knew it would be, was an instantaneous and uproarious “No!”

There was within the United States a strong and vocal anti-imperialist movement, which included former President Grover Cleveland, Andrew Carnegie and Mark Twain, but it struggled to tamp down the country’s growing expansionist zeal, and to compete with the energy, tenacity and bulldog ambition of one man in particular: Theodore Roosevelt. Roosevelt, who in just six years rose meteorically from New York City police commissioner to president, nurtured a deep and unshakable contempt for what he called the “unintelligent, cowardly chatter for ‘peace at any price.’ ” Not only had the “clamor of the peace faction” left him unmoved, Roosevelt wrote, it had served to strengthen his conviction that “this country needs a war.”

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Looking for a Fight

A New History of the Philippine-American War

By CANDICE MILLARD

The New York Times

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Ating Pinas_Let’s have an ‘Anti-Political Dynasty Movement’

Ating Pinas (Our Philippines) is a weekly series about anything and everything Filipino.  Featuring uplifting articles that inspire national pride as well as sombering essays to spur participation towards positive change.  

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As I See It

By Neal H. Cruz

Philippine Daily Inquirer

“The State shall guarantee equal access to opportunities for public service and prohibit political dynasties as may be defined by law.”—1986 Constitution

The Constitution is very clear. Only a little common sense is needed to understand it. The State shall prohibit political dynasties to allow others (those who do not belong to political dynasties) to become public servants. The trouble is the framers added the phrase “as may be defined by law.”

The constitutional provision needs an implementing law. The other trouble is, laws are written and passed by members of Congress many of whom are themselves members of political dynasties. Decades after the passage of the Constitution, we still have no defining law banning political dynasties.

The Senate committee on electoral reforms, chaired by Sen. Koko Pimentel, a member of the Pimentel political clan of Mindanao, is pussyfooting around the definition of “political dynasty” even if the ordinary Filipino already knows what it is. We have many, too many, political dynasties around us at present. And like a locust plague, they are multiplying rapidly. In almost all provinces, cities and municipalities, as well as in the national arena, political dynasties are fielding family members as candidates in next year’s elections. It is as if the political families are in a hurry to put relatives in political positions before a law is passed banning them.

Even boxer and neophyte congressman Manny Pacquiao is already starting his own political dynasty. He is fielding his wife, Jinkee, as candidate for vice governor of his adopted province of Sarangani. Very soon, we may have Mommy D as nominee of a party-list group of senior citizens or of ballroom dancers.

People thought that Pacquiao, not being a traditional politician, would bring reforms to the House of Representatives, or at least be different from most of the congressmen(women) there who think only of themselves. Alas, they were mistaken.

Pacquiao learned very quickly all the bad habits of his peers. He is absent from Congress for long periods most of the time while training for his upcoming boxing bouts from which he earns millions of US dollars. Yet he continues to collect his salaries and allowances, including his pork barrel, although he is not working for them. Lowly government employees, who live a hand-to-mouth existence, are subjected to the “no work, no pay” policy, but highly paid members of Congress like Pacquiao, although multimillionaires (but who pay very little income taxes unlike Pacquiao), collect their salaries and allowances although they are absent.

Pacquiao has not passed a single legislation; neither has he participated in congressional debates, but he already is building his own political dynasty. Manny (rhymes with “money”) probably thinks that, by virtue of being a multi-millionaire, he has the right to start his own political dynasty although he has not yet proven that he bears the seeds of good public servants.

With many members of Congress—both senators and congressmen(women)—belonging to political dynasties, it is not likely that Congress will pass an enabling law to the constitutional provision. Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago—happily one of the few who don’t belong to political dynasties—has filed an anti-dynasty bill in the Senate but, as stated earlier, the committee on electoral reforms is nitpicking on it. And even if such a bill manages to squeak through, most likely it would be watered down by amendments and become toothless and worthless.

Read complete article here.

Manny in Manila

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The 40th year of the declaration of Martial Law

TIME - Marcos' Martial Law - Without warning, police squads late last week walked into Manila's newspaper offices and broadcast stations, ordered staffers to leave and posted announcements Stating THIS BUILDING IS CLOSED AND SEALED AND PLACED UNDER MILITARY CONTROL.

Domestic air flights were grounded and overseas telephone operators refused to accept incoming calls. Finally, after several hours of mystifying silence, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos went on nationwide radio and TV to proclaim a state of martial law. Civil government would be continued, he said, but campuses would be closed. Restrictions on travel, the press and communications would remain in force until the government dealt with "a conspiracy to overthrow the government."

It was a drastic step; martial law had never before been imposed in the Philippines, despite the country's long history of social and political violence. And yet, though troops took up positions all over Manila, there were few other visible signs of emergency. Nightclubs, casinos and movie theaters remained open; shoppers were out in their usual numbers the next day. Filipinos accepted the measures calmly, even cynically, for they had been widely anticipated.

Only two weeks ago, in an atmosphere of rapidly increasing belligerence between the Marcos regime, its political opposition and a burgeoning Philippine revolutionary movement, the President warned that he would not hesitate to assume emergency powers if he deemed them necessary. He finally did so six hours after an unsuccessful attempt to assassinate one of Marcos' chief aides, Defense Secretary Juan Ponce Enrile. As the Secretary was heading home from his office in Manila, a carload of gunmen intercepted his car and riddled it with 30 shots; Enrile, who was riding with security men in a second car, was unhurt. The gunmen escaped unidentified.

Read complete article here.

Hotmanila - What Martial Law was like - In 1972 Ferdinand Marcos declared Martial Law with Proclamation 1081. He did it, he said, to save the Republic and to create what he called a "New Society." A whole generation of Filipinos now exists which only has the faintest recollection -- if at all -- of the Marcos dictatorship. Kids, this is what you missed. Perhaps it's what you should pass on when you have kids of your own.

The lies. The biggest lie -- the mother lie -- was that Martial Law was imposed for the good of the people. It was not. It was imposed for the good of the Marcoses and their cronies, to keep them in wealth and unassailable power forever and ever amen. Marcos was a congenital liar: he lied about the state of emergency. He lied about his ill-gotten wealth ("what ill-gotten wealth?", he would ask amusedly."Tell you what, if you can find it we'll split it". Shows how reliable his word was). He lied about his war medals (almost all of them were fake), he lied about his father's wartime heroics (it turned out Marcos Sr was a collaborator executed by the guerrillas), he lied about his health. He lied about holding free elections and dismantling Martial Law. He lied and lied and lied. This was the man Joseph Estrada wanted to give a hero's burial.

The fear. Anybody could be picked up at anytime for any reason by the military or the police. You could wind up a detainee, or you could just vanish, a "salvage" victim. If you protested against the government, you were labeled a "subversive" or a "communist" or both and you were summarily arrested. People the government didn't like were tailed by security elements, their telephones tapped. A student who spoke up to Imee Marcos was murdered. No two words were more invoked and abused for the purposes of oppression than "national security." People were afraid to speak out. Marcos logic being what it was, the silence meant the people were happy.

The injustice. Only Marcos and his cronies, who plundered the economy, were protected by the law. Nobody else was. Arbitrary arrest, detention, salvaging and torture were the standard. The Defense Minister -- a man named Juan Ponce Enrile -- said in 1982: "We presume that priests and nuns charged with subversive activities are guilty until the courts decide whether they are guilty or not." On one occasion the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, someone named Enrique Fernando, servilely held an umbrella over Imelda Marcos' head.

Read complete article here.

Martial Law Memorial Hall
located between
Manila City Hall and Universidad de Manila

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On the 40th year of the declaration of Martial Law, InterAksyon.com embarks on an ambitious project to literally give voice to more than 10,000 affidavits of human rights victims of the Marcos years.

If you can read and speak, you can help.

On September 21 - the 40th anniversary of the declaration of Martial Law - InterAksyon.com, in cooperation with the University of the Philippines College of Social Sciences and Philosophy (UP-CSSP) and the Center for Art, New Ventures, and Sustainable Development (CANVAS), will open a Martial Law museum at the UP Palma Hall Lobby.

The installations, among others, will play digitized audio files of personal accounts of a handful of people who were arrested and tortured during Martial Law.

So far, we've given voice to less than 20 affidavits. Little less than 10,000 to go.

Starting 6 p.m. on September 21, at the sides of a Martial Law Concert at the Palma Hall, and then resuming from September 23 until September 28, InterAksyon.com will set up recording stations at UP Palma Hall, Room 109. We will bring copies of more testimonials from people who were tortured, or from the families of those who were disappeared and/or killed.

All we need now are volunteers. Volunteers to read out the testimonials, as we've done in the multimedia features we've posted here, in our special coverage of the 40th Year of the Declaration of Martial Law.

Do take time to listen to the samples. We want to do that for the thousands of affidavits for which we would like to lend our voice. This will be our collective contribution towards building our collective memory. So that we will #NeverForget.

To volunteer, simply go to the UP-CSSP-InterAksyon.com-CANVAS Martial Law Museum at 6 p.m., September 21, and look for the InterAksyon.com desk at the Palma Hall Lobby. Also, constantly check this page for any updates in announcements/arrangements. Our recording sessions will resume on September 23 until September 28.

  

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Sharing with Weekly Top Shot

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Thank you!

President "P-Noy" Aquino

The first time I ran into P-Noy was when I covered a political rally in Makati a few years ago.  By some serendipitous turn of events, I found myself behind the stage where all the big-time politikos were gathered.  I was the only photojournalist in that barricaded area.

While his mother Cory was on stage calling for GMA to resign, P-Noy seemed at ease off stage talking to common folks behind the barricade.  He was a senator at that time and quite a popular one at that, too.  Perhaps, his family name lends him a princely stature that Filipinos find endearing. And as I studied him a bit further, gut feel told me he had no aspiration to become President.  He was too good natured -- the Machiavellian trapos and their sychophants would trample him into submission. But my intuition eventually proved me wrong.  Behind that easy going facade is a formidable, intrepid spirit.

The second time I ran into him was one weeknight just before midnight.  While the taxi cab I was on was traversing the street towards home, right there on the corner was his sedan with the usual motorcycle escorts and another vehicle at the tail.  They were apparently heading back to Malacanang compound and stopped at the corner to wait for the green light.  I was both dazzled and impressed.  You see, at that particular time, there was hardly any traffic and the sidewalks were practically bare of pedestrians, yet they were adhering to traffic rules like ordinary citizens.  No whirring lights and no wang wang!  It was then I was convinced P-Noy is indisputably the genuine article.

Nowadays, P-Noy is enjoying a soaring 77 percent satisfaction rating according to the third quarter survey of the Social Weather Stations.  This is the highest he has received since 2010.  It is indeed an affirmation of people’s trust in him.

Moreover, presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said, “The consistently strong numbers affirm the President’s mandate for change; they are tangible indicators of the people’s support for the difficult yet necessary reforms the President has championed since day one.”

A bit of trivia from Wikipedia:

In September 1972, P-Noy's father, Benigno "Ninoy" Aquino, Jr., who was then a senator and prominent opposition leader to President Ferdinand Marcos, was arrested for subversion. 

On August 25, 1973, he wrote a letter to P-Noy from Fort Bonifacio:

"The only advice I can give you: Live with honor and follow your conscience. There is no greater nation on earth than our Motherland. No greater people than our own. Serve them with all your heart, with all your might and with all your strength. Son, the ball is now in your hands."

Well, Mr. Ninoy Aquino, worry not, for your son is doing an exemplary job!

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State of the Nation Address 

delivered by President P-Noy on July 23, 2012

at the Session Hall of the House of Representatives 

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Thank you!

Philippines to Washington: Help!

The Philippines had asked Washington for help in building a "minimum credible defense" amid an escalating territorial dispute with China as reported by AFP News last Monday.

Philippine Foreign Secretary Alberto del Rosario and Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin accurately described the poor state of the Philippine armed forces as Hillary Clinton and Leon Panetta listened across the table.

Del Rosario cited how the international news media has accurately described the poor state of the Philippine armed forces; whereas, Gazmin alluded to tension with China over islands in the South China Sea as he called for the need to "intensify our mutual trust to uphold maritime security and the freedom of navigation."

A couple of days later, the United States officially assured the Philippines of assistance in maritime security and stressed its preference for a multilateral and “collaborative” approach to solving territorial disputes in the West Philippine Sea.

The US assurance was contained in a joint statement issued after a meeting Monday between US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Defense Secretary Leon Panetta and Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario and Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin.

The two countries also stressed the importance of their Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT) but kept quiet on whether the 1951 pact obliged the US to come to the aid of its ally in case shooting broke out at Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal.

In their joint statement, the Philippines and the US agreed that their respective military forces should be prepared to respond quickly and effectively to any contingencies that may arise in the region.

They also agreed to jointly explore how to strengthen the defense capabilities of the Philippines to achieve a credible defense posture and to cooperate in building the Philippines’ maritime security capabilities and strengthening its maritime domain awareness.

“To that end, the United States intends to transfer a second High Endurance cutter to the Philippines this year,” the statement said.

The timing of the Philippines' request for military assistance from the United States may not be so auspicious, considering the fact that Washington is coping with even more critical economic and political issues in both its domestic and international fronts.  

Nevertheless, it brings to mind a similar appeal to Washington made by then President Manuel Quezon during the 1930s.

On February 19, 1937, had the U.S. Charge d'Affaires in London, Ray Atherton, not discovered the nature of the clandestine meeting that was to be held between President Manuel Quezon and the British Foreign Minister, Anthony Eden, the Filipinos would have been belting out "God Save the Queen instead of humming Yankee doodle de dum tunes at major local gatherings.

Two years prior to this discovery, making good on his infamous sound bite, "I would rather have a government run like hell by Filipinos than a government run like heaven by Americans," Quezon -- upon assuming the presidency of the Commonwealth of the Philippines -- immediately pursued the task of laying the foundations of the future Philippine Republic.

However, the relations between Quezon and his American overlords during the transition period were often less than amenable; the resulting tensions and exasperations eventually prompted Quezon to secretly approach the British and explore the likelihood of the Philippines becoming a part of the British Empire -- as a self-governing dominion, like Australia, New Zealand and Canada.

As early as August 1933, then Senate President Quezon had already told his British friend and adviser, Frank Hodsoll, that should the United States abandon their protectorate interests in the Philippines, he would go to London, and on behalf of the 14,000,000 Filipinos, ask for admission to the British Commonwealth of Nations. Hodsoll, acting as Quezon's secret liaison agent, finally contacted top British officials on January 20, 1935.

At this time, Quezon was already coping with serious concerns about the threat of a Japanese invasion. He was also alarmed by the Americans' continued indifference on the issue, as well as their lackadaisical attitude toward strengthening the military defenses of the Philippines.

The British Foreign Office recognized the merits of Quezon's concerns and approved holding official, though initially clandestine, talks with Quezon. Unfortunately, the Americans got wind of the planned meeting in London. President Roosevelt and many high-ranking government officials were aghast; thus, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Francis B. Sayre immediately censured Quezon as per orders received from Washington.

In his response, Quezon riposted that for the survival of the Philippines, it was his duty to seek protection from another powerful nation; that is, if the United States were unable to provide it. He then pointed out the lack of palpable measures by the United States to fortify the archipelago and make her impregnable to a Japanese invasion.

Quezon also admitted that he would consider a treaty of amity and alliance with Japan if the United States and Great Britain refused to protect his country.

Ironically, despite their horrified reaction to Quezon's seemingly lack of loyalty, the United States' war plans from 1937 onward, prioritized winning the war in Europe. Essentially, America was prepared to accept the initial fall of Guam, Hawaii, and the Philippines to Japan. Such priority was mainly due to the fact that the American oligarchy at that time was mostly of European ancestry. Therefore, the Philippines was merely regarded as a not too significant a territory located in some far-flung remote region across the Pacific.

Furthermore, the U.S. did not appear to be in any position to guarantee, let alone provide, formidable military defense systems and logistics for the Philippines. This was made apparent when the American contingent at the 1941 secret Japan-US diplomatic negotiations began to consider permanently declaring the Philippines as a neutral country. Regrettably, diplomatic talks between the U.S. and Japan came to a sudden halt when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor.

These days, local historians could only speculate that perhaps, the eventual massive carpet-bombing of Manila by the U.S. forces during its liberation, might have been America's ultimate true response to Quezon's disloyalty, though his death saved him from seeing the city -- the seat of his government -- practically reduced to rubble.

Title: View of burnt-out Manila, 1945

Date: 1945-03-12

Place/Time: Post-war commonwealth / Philippines / Manila

Publisher: US Signal Corps

Description: Vividly illustrating the condition of burned-out, battle-scarred Manila, as U.S. engineers and thousands of Filipinos begin the huge task of reconstruction, is this aerial view looking southwest across the Pasig River toward hulks of sunken ships in the harbor. Tall building, left foreground, is gutted, Eastern Hotel, center, across river, is burned out, general post office, extreme left, across river is Metropolitan Opera House in ruins. Battered wall of Intramuros, Walled City, and destroyed buildings inside, occupies rectangular area beyond post office. Left is demolished Santa Cruz Bridge, repaired by Army engineers. The streets have already been cleared of rubble.

Rights: U.S. National Archives

Submitter: McCoy, Alfred W.: University of Wisconsin--Madison. 
Center for Southeast Asian Studies.

Local Identifier: SEAiT.Philippines.ph00835.bib

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I very much appreciate my articles and photos appearing on fellow bloggers' sites, popular broadsheets, and local broadcast news segments, but I would appreciate even more a request for permission first.

Thank you!

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