| THE PHILIPPINES:

Alternately called ‘‘a revolution’? and
_ *‘an example of the democratic process
} inaction” by the western press, the top-
} pling of the 20-year Marcos dictatorship
' in the Philippines and election of the
‘) Aquino-Laurel government has been the
} subject of intense public scrutiny and
‘3 speculation. :

‘ There is little doubt that the process
t

l

LO gaat ort

‘| will continue as the Philippines now en-
_ ters a new stage. Questions abound:
) What will the new"government do to
begin to solve the country’s basic socio-
onomic crisis? What will its relations
to the United States, to the presence
f U.S. military power on Philippine soil,
‘to the International Monetary Fund, to
its neighbors in the Pacific?
“Internally, how will the new president
and her cabinet dismantle the Marcos
machine, deal with land reform, civil
rights, and a host of public expectations
hich are beginning to take form now
that the changeover is complete.
_ Economically, the Philippines is, as
quino puts it, ‘‘a basket case’’. Its
reign debt stands at $27-billion. Annual
interest on the debt ($1.7-billion) equals
_ one-third of its export earnings, wages
have dropped to 1972 levels of $600 a
ar and the IMF is standing in the wings
demanding more concessions. Unem-
ployment and underemployment is
chronic, estimated at half the working
population. Any plans Aquino has ‘for
d reform, involving breaking up the
ge plantations, will run head on into
the huge-private armies. of the owners.
- In looking at the process that brought

_ Whose agenda
will prevail?

Aquino to power it must be recognized
that Marcos’ ouster is a victory for the
people. Propped up by Washington for
two decades, the dictator finally became
too hot to handle. Over and over again,
U.S. officials made the point that Ameri-
can military and economic interests in
the region, not democracy and human
rights, were primary in their view of
events over the past weeks.

From the U.S. point of view, Marcos
was on his way out. Their problem was to
find a method whereby the energy, anger
and genuine people’s demand for change
could be so channelled as to protect U.S.
strategic requirements. Now that a new
government is in office, the question is:
did this strategy succeed?

On the plus side, President Aquino has
freed political prisoners held by Marcos
and repealled anti-labor laws banning
strikes. She has begun ousting some
Marcos cronies from the media and other
powerful posts. And, as expected, she
has appealled for time to get her
minimum election platform started.

But serious doubts about the new
government's willingness and/or capac-
ity to initiate fundamental changes
abound. The make-up of Aquino’s new
17-member cabinet (called “‘centerist”’ in
the U.S. press) clearly shows who’s in
charge. Added to Marcos’ former De-
fence Minister, Enrile and his Central
Bank Governor, Fernandez, the cabinet
is replete with businessmen, bankers,
lawyers, ranchers and corporation
executives. Totally missing are
representatives of labor and small far-

> = z

terests will the new government represent?

mers or voices of the country’s left.

The Washington connection is strong
and growing stronger. Aquino’s election
program speaks of making Southeast
Asia a “‘zone of neutrality, freedom, and
peace, free of all nuclear weapons and
free of domination of all foreign powers
...”” How this can be done with the mas-
sive U.S. military presence at Clark and
Subic bases and with Reagan’s promise
of more military ‘‘aid” is difficult to see.

Pressure from Washington has been
heavy and is certain to mount. It has
been openly offering advice on ways to
“‘deal with communist insurgency”’ and,
with Marcos’ 230,000-member armed
forces intact and many former Marcos
generals still in command, this “‘option”’
to press the anti-guerrilla war is wide
open.

The U.S. has made its position clear: it
can live with changes in form, but not in
content. It can agree with cosmetic in-
ternal changes such as cleaning up the

_ worst of the cronyism and corruption of

the old dictatorship. It may even assist in

What’s ahead for the people following the toppling of the Marcos regime? Whose in-

facilitating the return of billions stolen by
the Marcos family.

It will not, however, sit silent should
the Aquino government begin to address
the basic questions of economic justice,
independent foreign policy, neutrality
and a nuclear-free Pacific, because these
hit at the very core of U.S. policy.

Clearly Aquino and her government
face a glaring contradiction. If it bends to
U.S. pressure, it will quickly erode the
mass anti-Marcos support which brought
it to power. If it merely dismantles the
Marcos machine then replaces it with
one to safeguard the bankers, ranchers
and the military at the expense of
people’s needs, it will soon become iso-
lated, and the struggle for social justice
and national independence will go on.

Marcos is gone and a new government
may have its agenda. Reagan also has his
agenda and is pressing for it. But the
Philippine people, who experienced a
political schooling and felt their power
when united, also have theirs.

— Tom Morris -

INTERNATIONAL FOCUS Tom Morris

aw

The monkey?
_ or organ-grinder?

| __ As the investigation into the
} Jan. 28 destruction of the space
| shuttle Challenger unfolds, we
see a litany of ‘flaws’ fuelled
by intense pressure to launch
the flight despite clear warn-
_ ings from engineers of the dan-
gers involved.

_ The findings will undoubt-
edly be that middle manage-
ment people were responsible
for the decision to proceed.
Everyone involved will be
running for cover, passing the
buck and rationalizing. That's
to be expected when scape-
goats are being sought.

criminals in this tragedy will
get off without a scratch — or
almost.

An intriguing news report
st week evoked an angry
White House reaction. It
that the pressure to
on that fateful morning
y began from Wash-

on. z
You recall that Reagan was
to deliver his State of the

‘Union address that evening. It
was to be the usual extra-
‘vaganza with the Chief stand-
g before the entire nation un-
_ folding the American Dream.
_ But there was to be a differ-

And, most certainly, the real .

ence: Reagan, via telephone

hook-up, would speak with the
challenger. crew, the con-

versation transmitted to every
home. What better evidence of
the nation’s achievements?
What higher theatre?

This ultimate production
exploded with the shuttle. The
speech was cancelled. The in-

Shuttle disaster probe: attack-
ing the symptom, not the dis-
ease.

vestigation to find ‘‘those re-
sponsible’’ was begun.

Far-fetched? Impossible?

No investigation will ever
prove a direct order to launch
was given or received at Cape
Canaveral. Reagan, his aides
and those in the administration
aren't prone to leaving that
kind of evidence laying
around.

But everyone in charge of
that launch knew exactly what
was planned for the evening’s
Presidential speech. Safety
took a back seat to politics and
profit. :

This won't be said openly.
The commission will find the
monkey, not the organ-
grinder.

Flying on
Air America

Filipinos are asking a few —

questions about Marcos and
his (their) money the dictator
Stole as he fled the country. It’s
something like Haitians are
asking: By what right does a
dictator rob the country, then
is able to run with the loot? By
what moral right does he es-
cape judgement of a people he
persecuted?

More: Why does he always
get away at the last moment —
and always aboard aircraft

bearing the insignia ‘‘U.S. Air
Force’’? In Duvalier’s case,
two planes carried the tyrant
and his treasures. In Marcos’
case, four aircraft were re-
quired. ;

Maybe for Pinochet it will
take an entire tactical wing.

As Reagan puffs about
‘‘America’s help’ in Marcos’
overthrow (once he couldn't
any longer hold onto his
friend), and the media wallows
in self-congratulations as if
they never noticed a dictator
was ruling the Philippines, it’s
becoming obvious Washington
had its money on both jockeys
— just in case.

What happens now in Man-
ila remains to be seen. But very
clear is the fact that it’s just
fine, thank you, for Marcos

AN

Imelda and Ferdinand: a re-
ward of refuge.

PACIFIC TRIBUNE, MARCH 12, 1986 e 9

‘cial toll. Now police terror has

and his cronies to settle in
Hawaii. Secretary of State
Shultz even told the press that
Marcos should be given the
“respect and honor’? he de-
serves.

He served his masters well:
it’s only that he didn’t leave
soon enough. But that’s all in
the past. It’s just too bad the
Statue of Liberty isn’t ready,
or Marcos could have entered
the United States via Ellis Is-
land to start his new life in the
land of opportunity.

More horrors
from apartheid

Now South African law will
permit police unchecked per-
manent powers of arrest with-
out charges. They will have
complete discretionary power
to ban gatherings, muzzel the
press and detain people in-
definately.

In fact, while Botha says the
seven-month State of
emergency will be lifted, he
has now made emergency
police power a permanent fact
in law.

Over 800 killed, 7,878 de-
tained (2,106 children under
16) was the seven month offi-

been made legal.

q
ce |