KABATAAN PARTY-LIST
North Wing Room 419, House of Representatives, Batasan Complex, Quezon City
Email: cong.mongpalatino@gmail.com Telefax: (+632) 931-5504, Trunkline: (+632) 9315001 loc 7378

PRESS RELEASE
April 16, 2012
 

Multilateral Balikatan unconstitutional

"Other foreign troops cannot engage in military exercises without an enabling treaty." This was the statement of Atty. Terry Ridon, spokesperson and general counsel of Kabataan Partylist as he criticized this week's Balikatan exercises which would involve other foreign troops participating in supposed disaster management.

The young lawyer said that the 1987 Constitution requires the ratification of treaty to even allow for 'mere entry' of foreign troops.

"US and other foreign troops cannot hide behind the cloak of disaster management to cure the unconstitutionality of this year's Balikatan exercises."

He said that even if among the alleged thrusts of this year's Balikatan are disaster management and community development, such activities are well-within the confines of military operations with clear military objectives.

He said that disaster management and community development measures are conducted simultaneously with community intelligence gathering, surveillance operations, geo-mapping of terrain and topography, all of which serve clear combat objectives of the US Joint Special Operations Task Force.

"As such, US troops, in the guise of exercises and community activities, are in fact engaging in direct combat operations in the country, which completely tramples upon Philippine sovereignty."

US, China bullying

Ridon said that both China and the US are ultimately interested in exploiting the Philippines for their own political and economic ends.

"It is foolish for us to valiantly stand against China on one hand while pussy-footing US intrusions into Philippine sovereignty. Both must stop, and we must defend ourselves against both."

Reference: Atty. Terry Ridon, spokesperson and general counsel, Kabataan Partylist, 09155310725, teridon18@gmail.com

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"the development of each is the development of all."
terryridon.com

AP Photo/Bullit Marquez) AP — at US Embassy, Roxas Blvd. Manila

A couple walks past the defaced seal of the U.S. Embassy in Manila, Philippines after protesters held a rally early Monday, April 16, 2012, to coincide with the opening of the annual joint military exercise dubbed "Balikatan 2012" or Shoulder-to-Shoulder between U.S. and Philippine troops. The protesters are also calling for the abrogation of the Visiting Forces Agreement which allows the US troops' presence in the country. (AP Photo/Bullit Marquez) AP — at US Embassy, Roxas Blvd. Manila, Philippines.
 

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Caravan versus US Balikatan war games kicks off Monday
Posted on 15 April 2012 by admin

News Release
April 16, 2012

Various groups led by the Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN) and the International League of Peoples Struggles (ILPS) will kick off on Monday nationwide actions to protest the Balikatan exercises that will start on the same day. The ILPS will also be spearheading international solidarity protests against the Balikatan exercises. Protesters from Manila are traveling from Quezon City to Clark Airbase and Basa Airbase for a one-day caravan. In Mindanao, an island-wide caravan will kick-off on April 16 and would converge in Zamboanga City on April 20, where the 600 US Special Forces have been based since 2002.
 

Umbrella group Bayan warned the Philippine government against inviting US involvement in regional issues such as the Chinese naval incursions in Scarborough Shoal and the recent North Korea rocket launch. It said that the US will intervene only to advance its own agenda of trying to maintain a dominant presence in the region. The move will certainly complicate the dispute, the group said.
 

“The Balikatan exercises is but part of a bigger design to make US troops a permanent fixture in the Philippines, even without any formal basing treaty. The hype surrounding the North Korean rocket launch, and the US statements on the disputes in the South China Sea are clearly intended to justify the permanent presence of American troops in Philippine territory and the region,” said Bayan secretary general Renato M. Reyes, Jr.
 

“The US wants it known that it is still top dog in this region, to the great dismay of many peace-loving peoples in Southeast Asia. We do not want our country to be used as a US outpost and playground. We are not a laboratory for US drone wars. We do not want the US meddling in our internal conflicts and regional issues. We do not want the Philippines acting like the US troops’ doormat in the region. We do not want US troops using our country as their RnR destination of choice,” Reyes added.
 

Bayan said that even if the Philippine government denies that the exercises are aimed against China, the US government has made it sufficiently clear as to the purpose of the war games.
 

“We should endeavor to stand up against China minus any US intervention,” he added.
 

In the document “Sustaining US Global Leadership, Priorities for 21st Century Defense” released by the White House in January 2012, the US government said that “U.S. economic and security interests are inextricably linked to developments in the arc extending from the Western Pacific and East Asia into the Indian Ocean region and South Asia, creating a mix of evolving challenges and opportunities. Accordingly, while the U.S. military will continue to contribute to security globally, we will of necessity rebalance toward the Asia-Pacific region”,” the document said.
 

“Over the long term, China’s emergence as a regional power will have the potential to affect the U.S. economy and our security in a variety of ways… In order to credibly deter potential adversaries and to prevent them from achieving their objectives, the United States must maintain its ability to project power in areas in which our access and freedom to operate are challenged. States such as China and Iran will continue to pursue asymmetric means to counter our power projection capabilities,” it added.
 

By April 30, the US and Philippine governments will be meeting in Washington to finalize details of the deployment of added US troops in the Philippines. News reports say US Marines from Okinawa are being moved to Guam and rotated to countries like Australia and the Philippines.
 

The ILPS said that more protests are expected on April 16 in areas like Los Angeles, San Francisco and New York in the United States, Canada, Netherlands, Hong Kong, South Korea, Japan, New Zealand, Australia and Saudi Arabia.

US bases are present in South Korea and Japan. Some 200 US troops meanwhile have moved to Australia recently under a new agreement between the US and Australian governments. ###

AP Photo/Bullit Marquez) AP — at US Embassy, Roxas Blvd. Manila

A handful of riot police try to push back protesters who defaced the seal of the U.S. Embassy in Manila, Philippines during a rally early Monday, April 16, 2012 to coincide with the opening of the annual joint military exercise dubbed "Balikatan 2012" or Shoulder-to-Shoulder between U.S. and Philippine troops. The protesters are also calling for the abrogation of the Visiting Forces Agreement which allows the U.S. troops' presence in the country. (AP Photo/Bullt Marquez) AP — at US Embassy, Roxas Blvd. Manila, Philippines.
 

AP Photo/Bullit Marquez) AP — at US Embassy, Roxas Blvd. Manila

Protesters shout slogans after defacing the seal of the U.S. Embassy in Manila, Philippines during a rally early Monday, April 16, 2012 to coincide with the opening of the annual joint military exercise dubbed "Balikatan 2012" or Shoulder-to-Shoulder between U.S. and Philippine troops. The protesters are also calling for the abrogation of the Visiting Forces Agreement which allows the U.S. troops' presence in the country. (AP Photo/Bullit Marquez) AP — at US Embassy, Roxas Blvd. Manila, Philippines
 

US-PH war games a prelude to ‘unofficial’ U.S bases, American military occupation – Anakbayan
by ANAKBAYAN on Apr 16, 2012 • 2:35 pm • No Comments
PRESS RELEASE

April 16, 2012

US-PH war games a prelude to ‘unofficial’ U.S bases, American military occupation – Anakbayan

Anakbayan, as the comprehensive patriotic organization of the Filipino youth, vehemently opposes the presence of any and all U.S troops in the Philippines. Thus, we are also opposed to the Balikatan war games between American and Filipino troops which will begin today, and will take place simultaneously in several parts of the Philippines.

These war games are among the arrangements between the U.S and PH governments which allow American soldiers to supposedly ‘visit’ our country. But in reality, these allow U.S troops to base themselves in the Philippines without the actual and physical military bases which we evicted back in 1991 and which are expressly forbidden under our Constitution.

We oppose the ‘basing without bases’ primarily because it violates the sovereignty and independence of our nation. In the past, the American military bases and personnel have interfered in our nation’s affairs. They bloodily suppressed pro-independence uprisings during the time we were a colony of the U.S, and during the Commonwealth. Even after the granting of our so-called independence, American troops again intervened by directing the mass murder of Filipino guerillas of the HUKBALAHAP (Hukbong Bayan Laban sa Hapon, or Anti-Japanese People’s Army).

Furthermore, the presence of U.S troops serves as a deterrent to any patriotic and pro-people decisions the host country’s government might undertake, especially if it runs counter to the interests of the American government. Declassified files of the Pentagon and the Central Intelligence Agency have revealed U.S military action against nationalist governments in Cuba (Bay of Pigs Invasion), Chile (1971 Coup), Nicaragua (Contras of 1980s), and Venezuela (failed 2001 Coup).

Aside from the violation of our independence, our past experiences with the American bases reveal the scourges brought about by U.S troops in our country.

U.S military forces have previously brought in nuclear material in our country, something which is expressly prohibited in our Constitution. After the 1991 Mt. Pinatubo eruption, evacuees were housed in the just-abandoned U.S bases. Hundreds became sick with radiation poisoning and died, to say nothing of hundreds of evacuees’ children who have suffered birth defects. As of present, we do not have the power to inspect American soldiers to ensure that it does not happen again.

U.S soldiers have been known to sexually abuse Filipinas, as well as encourage prostitution which also exploits them. In other countries, they are also notorious for committing massacres, such as the July 2007 massacre of a dozen Iraqis, including two journalists, by a U.S military helicopter crew. Recent events, such as the ‘Subic Rape Case’, have shown that our government has been rendered helpless in bringing erring American soldiers to justice.

But the most recent threat to the Filipino people is the introduction of ‘killer drones’, or unmanned aerial vehicles of the U.S military. While they are touted in American government propaganda as ‘smart weapons’, it is well-documented in Afghanistan and Pakistan that they either miss their targets or deliberately target civilians.

We thus reiterate our call: the greatest threat to the freedom of our country and people is already within our borders. In its decades-long military occupation and presence of the Philippines, as well as that of our nations, American troops have proven to be a bwisita, or a most unwelcome guest. ###
 

“Vandals”
by Renato Reyes, Jr.
Posted: April 17, 2012 in All in a day's work, Socio-Political, War on Terror
http://natoreyes.wordpress.com/2012/04/17/1461/

In today’s news reports, the word “vandalism” has been used to describe the protest action by militant youth and students at the US embassy yesterday, April 16. The alleged “vandalism” pertains to the paint-bombing and removal of letters from the seal of the US embassy in Manila. One report headlined as “Police caught sleeping as vandals attack US embassy”. (Notice how the usual “militants” tag has been dropped in favor of “vandals” ).

The word “vandalism” is derived from the Germanic Vandals who ransacked Rome and were said to have defaced or destroyed much of the “beauty” of the Empire that was founded on slavery and colonization. Wikipedia says that “The term Vandalisme was coined in 1794 by Henri Grégoire, bishop of Blois, to describe the destruction of artwork following the French Revolution,” The introduction of the term builds on the notion that those destroying art, like the Germanic Vandals, were “barbaric”.

During the Paris Commune, French artist Gustave Courbet proposed before the commune the dismantling of the Vendome Column, a symbol of Napoleon’s empire. Back then, it was a celebrated act of “vandalism”. In certain situations like the Paris Commune, “vandalism” became an act to protest the symbols of the power and conquest. Similar acts would be repeated in history as the portraits of the dictator Marcos would be vandalized in the siege of Malacanang and when the huge bust of the dictator would be destroyed in an explosion launched by the New People’s Army.

But those were exceptional situations because most of the time, the word “vandalism” hewed closer to its ruling-class origins, often connoting an act of barbarism. When I was a young boy, vandalism was a school offense, often referring to writing stuff on the CR wall or on your desk.

The media’s use of the term “vandals” in describing activists was derogatory to the point that it attempts to reduce the protest as a rowdy mob out to sow mayhem in the streets, much like the German Vandals.

The protesters were targeting the US embassy, long a symbol of US neocolonial rule in the Philippines. They were protesting the opening of the Balikatan war games which aim to use the Philippines as a staging ground for US military power projection in the region. They knew full well that the US war machine has been responsible for so many killings and destruction worldwide. The US has gotten away with mass murder and the unprecedented destruction of public and private property in its bid to be the world’s sole superpower.

 

The students were trying to tell the US government that it should not for a second think that it is unchallenged here in the Philippines. Protesters wanted to send the clear message that they were ready to dismantle, figuratively and literally, the symbols of US power in the region.

Some may be shocked or turned off by yesterday’s protest action, in the same way they were probably turned off by the heckling of US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton. However, the media’s depiction of activists as a bunch of rowdy goons is grossly unfair.

As I wrote before on the heckling of Clinton, protesters sometimes resort to a kind of “asymmetrical warfare” to convey their message and express their outrage. I’ve seen students hurl paint bombs at greedy oil firms’ offices. I’ve seen workers smash windows of workplaces and vehicles during violent suppression of strikes. I’ve seen UP residents topple a guard house to set up a barricade against a demolition team. Protesters defaced or “vandalized” many of Gloria Arroyo’s posters during her reign of terror. Even before that, protesters did the same thing to huge tarpaulins of former president Estrada.

Instead of calling them vandals, media should have asked what it was that caused such outrage on the students that they would get up early from bed and proceed to pick apart, letter by letter, the seal of the mighty U.S. of A.

Yesterday’s action at the US embassy should be taken in its entire political context, and not just viewed based on the specific act of defacing the seal. It was an act of protest– no different from dismantling Napoleon’s Column or blowing up Marcos’ bust– against a neocolonial power that has done the worst acts of barbarism of the past century. ###