Editorial:
Prepare for and resist continued and escalating US military intervention in the Philippines

Basahin ang artikulong ito sa Pilipino

US imperialism's real motives for the continued and growing presence of American troops in the country has become ever clearer. There are now several indications that the influx of US troops in the country, particularly in Basilan, will not end with the six-month duration of Balikatan 02-1.

These past months, the US, in conspiracy with the puppet Macapagal-Arroyo regime, has gradually been laying the "basis" for the justification of its sinister scheme.

In the beginning, it used its assistance to the AFP in stamping out the Abu Sayyaf and rescuing two American hostages held by the bandit group as a rationalization. These justifications were used to allay intense objections to the presence of US troops in the Philippines.

But although US troops have been here for almost six months, the Abu Sayyaf has yet to be crushed and the American captives yet to be saved. American officials have also expressed openness to paying ransom.

In April, an additional 320 American troops came in and the construction of military infrastructure was begun to accommodate the needs of US military equipment. At the same time, Macapagal-Arroyo has repeatedly declared that she was in favor of extending the stay of American troops in Basilan.

On the other hand, "training exercises" and "coordinated operations" between US and AFP troops have grown ever bigger. From April 22 to May 6, Balikatan 02-2 was launched and participated in by 2,500 American troops.

National Security Adviser Roilo Golez and Balikatan co-director Brig. Gen. Emmanuel Teodosio have announced that up to 5,000 American troops would be participating in one of the Balikatan exercises in 2003. In particular, these "training exercises" aim to achieve "interoperability", or the ability of Philippine troops to integrate smoothly in joining US military operations.

US Pacific Command chief, Adm. Dennis Blair has also expressed the US' desire to expand its troops' mission in Mindanao. Blair wants American troops to directly participate in combat operations not only in Basilan but in other parts of Mindanao, beyond its current "training" mission.

All these things point to one objective: The US and the puppet Macapagal-Arroyo regime wish to make the presence of American troops permanent and raise imperialist intervention in the Philippines to an even higher level. Towards this end, they have resorted to all sorts of schemes, legal maneuvers and convoluted arguments.

The entire country is now practically a US military base. This is worse than before because any part of the Philippines may now be used by any number of American troops at any time for their military objectives. Such an arrangement will further be reinforced in planned amendments to the reactionary constitution.

This plan by the U.S. to maintain a permanent military presence is part of the reorientation of its military deployment to further ensure its rule as the sole superpower after the Cold War. This reorientation has been buttressed after the attacks on the US on September 11, 2001.

Accordingly, US troops must position themselves early on in the same area or in an area closest to probable sources of threats to the security and the political and economic interests of the US. Such troops positioned in strategic areas of the globe serve as forward deterrent forces as well as forward combat and expeditionary forces.

To rationalize US presence in the Philippines, Bush and US defense officials have been talking about the existence of a "terrorist network" in Southeast Asia. It is allegedly necessary to deploy American troops in Mindanao to cripple "terrorist" operations in the area. There are also plans to use the island as a forward base that would facilitate access to Indonesia and other parts of Southeast Asia where "terrorists" are supposed to maintain links and bases. According to the oppressive viewpoint being propagated by the US, the Mindanao-Indonesia-Malaysia triangle is a big potential base for "terrorists" because the world's largest Muslim population can be found in this area.

Southeast Asia is part of what the US considers a broad "arc of instability" extending from the Middle East to Northeast Asia. The US is currently paying special attention to strengthening its forces in Southeast Asia and other parts of this "arc of instability" where there has been a vacuum or a reduction in US presence in the past and where threats against the stability of US interests have grown stronger. The US fears potential erruption of disorder due to the depth of crises wracking countries within the area as well as the emergence and advance of democratic and patriotic people's struggles.

Most of all, the US wants to deploy forces in the Philippines to confront one of its most dreaded threats -- the national-democratic revolutionary movement. The latter and the struggling Moro people are slated to be the targets in the next stage of joint operations of the US military and the AFP.

The probability of armed aggression grows ever bigger. The legal and democratic forces must exert even more effort in exposing, criticizing and opposing such a scheme by US imperialism and its puppet regime. We must lead and mobilize the people to show that a president who shamelessly tramples on Philippine sovereignty cannot hold power for long. Such actions must also have the concrete objective of ejecting all occupation troops from the country.

We are trying our very best to thwart armed aggression. But once composite American and AFP troops attack the territory of the revolutionary movement, they will suffer the blows of a war of national liberation. We must prepare the revolutionary movement and the people's thoughts and organization for such an eventuality.

May 2002
English Edition

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