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Bush's
Permanent War In his State of the Union speech, President Bush proclaimed that his "permanent war" on terrorism has many countries in its gunsights. Kansas Senator Sam Brownback notes that the Philippines is "the next target, after Afghanistan, in the war on terrorism." So, with a victory in Afghanistan seemingly secure, the administration has begun sending troops into the Philippines. The U.S. deployment has caused a political firestorm and constitutional crisis in that country. A majority of the Filipino people oppose the recent introduction of 660 U.S. soldiers, according to a poll taken on January 20. Opponents are calling for the impeachment of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo who allowed Bush to bring in the U.S. troops. "After our Senate ended more than 400 years of foreign military presence in the Philippines," says Jovito Salonga, former president of the Philippine Senate, "we are now back to the worst kind of military intervention. In my view, this is a violation of the constitution that bans foreign troops and foreign facilities in the Philippines." A RETURN TO U.S. DOMINANCE? This is not the first time U.S. troops have landed in the Philippines. From 1898 to 1946, Filipinos lived under formal U.S. military control. U.S. companies took over the Filipino economy, and the U.S. government imposed English as the official language. This January 30, U.S. troops began joint exercises with the Filipino military, supported by $100 million worth of additional American military equipment. Their stated mission is to "advise" the Filipino army in the battle with Abu Sayyaf, an insurgent Islamic organization. Abu Sayyaf has an estimated 500 fighters who are seeking to establish a separate state in the Muslim-dominated southern part of this largely Catholic country. The U.S. government says Abu Sayyaf is linked to Al Qaeda, but according to the New York Times, the evidence for this connection is "sketchy." Some U.S. military experts also publicly oppose the introduction of U.S. troops as too risky. So, what might be the strategic goals of moving the "permanent war" to the Philippines? Some analysts say that the U.S. may be planning to reestablish military bases in the Philippines. One western diplomat told Agence France-Presse that Philippine bases would greatly enhance U.S. military power throughout Southeast Asia. From bases in the Philippines the U.S. could deploy warships from the Pacific Ocean to the Persian Gulf. It may be that bringing U.S. troops into the Philippines has more to do with establishing a military presence in that country and less to do with fighting terrorism. Critics believe that the real goal of President Bush's "war on terrorism" is this kind of global enhancement of U.S. military and economic power. Whatever
the reasons, most Filipinos oppose the return of the U.S. military. Until
1992, the U.S. maintained military bases throughout the country. The bases
gave rise to widespread sexual exploitation of Filipino women by U.S.
servicemen. A huge, non-violent Filipino movement against the U.S. bases
led to their closure a decade ago. A similar movement may be reignited
by the "war against terrorism." |
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