Senator Rodolfo Biazon, co-chairman of the Legislative Oversight Committee on Visiting Forces Agreement, asks an American military officer during an ocular inspection of the US facilities in Edwin Andrews Air Base in Zamboanga City.The American facilities here are administrative in nature and not combat operational in nature. It is administrative in nature. These are our preliminary findings, Senator Rodolfo Biazon said Thursday.
Biazon, co-chairman of the Legislative Oversight Committee on the Visiting Forces Agreements, explained that all of these US government facilities constructed here are all inside the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) bases.
“So, as a former soldier, it is difficult for me to make a conclusion that the Americans have established their own military bases here,” said Biazon, who was a former AFP chief of staff during President Cory Aquino’s administration in 1991.
But he made clear that they would continue to evaluate their initial findings. “The sub-committee will provide a report to the mother committee and that will be discussed within that mother committee, subsequently.”
The fact-finding team was organized by the Senate and the House in respond to the allegations on the setting up of US military bases in Mindanao and the involvement of American troops in actual combat operations.
The team has inspected American facilities inside Edwin Andrews Air Base in Sta. Maria, Camp Arturo Enrile in Malagutay, the Western Mindanao Command in Upper Calarian district, and Naval Forces-Western Mindanao in Calarian.
Its initial findings contradict the members of Citizen’s Peace Watch’s findings from its fact-finding mission, which claimed to have seen with their own eyes and to have pictures of the US military structures inside camps in Zamboanga City.
The coalition group, formed by diverse non-governmental organizations (NGOs), Moro groups, political party-lists and leftists, to monitor what it fears as the growing and permanent US military presence in the Southern Philippines.
Meanwhile, Cebu (2nd District) Congressman Antonio Cuenco, who co-chairs the LOVFA in the House of Representatives, said they have not found any violations in so far the VFA agreement between the US and the Philippines is concerned.
“For example, the allegations that the US forces were engaged in espionage which is an act of war. We can’t find that as an act of war,” Cuenco told reporters at a press conference inside the Western Mindanao Command headquarters.
He said the US forces are providing Filipino soldiers with intelligence information regarding the activities of the Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) and the Abu Sayyaf, which has links to the Al Qaida militant group.
“Those are enemies of the Philippine Republic and we are happy to be able to get information from any source whatsoever so that we can attend our objective in demolishing these enemies of our state,” he added.
So far, according to him, they have not seen any veracity of the anti-US troops’ accusations against the Americans. “We are very careful of the facts (information) that we are getting from the fact-finding mission.”
For his part, Ret. Lt. Gen. Edilberto Adan, now defense undersecretary and executive director of the Presidential Commission on VFA, said they have not found any basis for the allegations in previous hearings.
“Is not factual. The reports are not substantiated, however we would be continuously getting observations, comments and reports so that we can have a factual and good assessments on this probe,” he said.
Biazon, meantime, vowed that he would personally make a move in Congress through democratic process to abrogate the VFA if there is a finding that indeed the Americans violated the provisions of the agreement.
“Six months only, we can abrogate the agreement unilaterally in case we are convinced that there is a violation of the agreement that is specified for in one of the penultimate articles in the VFA, but there’s no violation yet,” Cuenco supported Biazon’s statement.
Zamboanga City Congressman (2nd District) Erbie Fabian lauded the American troops in Mindanao, saying they are doing a great help for the region in terms of helping the Philippine military and humanitarian services.
“However, what I have been telling you earlier that their (US forces) stay here should be within the confines of the provisions of the VFA. No overstaying and no other violations,” Fabian reiterated.
But the Citizen’s Peace Watch considered the US military's so-called humanitarian projects as mere cover for military operations, saying that it do not benefit the local population.
The coalition group said US basing and intervention in the country is contributing to insecurity and leading to an escalation in conflict. It also demands the suspension of US military deployment to the Philippines, specifically the stationing of the JSOTF-P as well as the military exercises. (HG)
Biazon, co-chairman of the Legislative Oversight Committee on the Visiting Forces Agreements, explained that all of these US government facilities constructed here are all inside the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) bases.
“So, as a former soldier, it is difficult for me to make a conclusion that the Americans have established their own military bases here,” said Biazon, who was a former AFP chief of staff during President Cory Aquino’s administration in 1991.
But he made clear that they would continue to evaluate their initial findings. “The sub-committee will provide a report to the mother committee and that will be discussed within that mother committee, subsequently.”
The fact-finding team was organized by the Senate and the House in respond to the allegations on the setting up of US military bases in Mindanao and the involvement of American troops in actual combat operations.
The team has inspected American facilities inside Edwin Andrews Air Base in Sta. Maria, Camp Arturo Enrile in Malagutay, the Western Mindanao Command in Upper Calarian district, and Naval Forces-Western Mindanao in Calarian.
Its initial findings contradict the members of Citizen’s Peace Watch’s findings from its fact-finding mission, which claimed to have seen with their own eyes and to have pictures of the US military structures inside camps in Zamboanga City.
The coalition group, formed by diverse non-governmental organizations (NGOs), Moro groups, political party-lists and leftists, to monitor what it fears as the growing and permanent US military presence in the Southern Philippines.
Meanwhile, Cebu (2nd District) Congressman Antonio Cuenco, who co-chairs the LOVFA in the House of Representatives, said they have not found any violations in so far the VFA agreement between the US and the Philippines is concerned.
“For example, the allegations that the US forces were engaged in espionage which is an act of war. We can’t find that as an act of war,” Cuenco told reporters at a press conference inside the Western Mindanao Command headquarters.
He said the US forces are providing Filipino soldiers with intelligence information regarding the activities of the Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) and the Abu Sayyaf, which has links to the Al Qaida militant group.
“Those are enemies of the Philippine Republic and we are happy to be able to get information from any source whatsoever so that we can attend our objective in demolishing these enemies of our state,” he added.
So far, according to him, they have not seen any veracity of the anti-US troops’ accusations against the Americans. “We are very careful of the facts (information) that we are getting from the fact-finding mission.”
For his part, Ret. Lt. Gen. Edilberto Adan, now defense undersecretary and executive director of the Presidential Commission on VFA, said they have not found any basis for the allegations in previous hearings.
“Is not factual. The reports are not substantiated, however we would be continuously getting observations, comments and reports so that we can have a factual and good assessments on this probe,” he said.
Biazon, meantime, vowed that he would personally make a move in Congress through democratic process to abrogate the VFA if there is a finding that indeed the Americans violated the provisions of the agreement.
“Six months only, we can abrogate the agreement unilaterally in case we are convinced that there is a violation of the agreement that is specified for in one of the penultimate articles in the VFA, but there’s no violation yet,” Cuenco supported Biazon’s statement.
Zamboanga City Congressman (2nd District) Erbie Fabian lauded the American troops in Mindanao, saying they are doing a great help for the region in terms of helping the Philippine military and humanitarian services.
“However, what I have been telling you earlier that their (US forces) stay here should be within the confines of the provisions of the VFA. No overstaying and no other violations,” Fabian reiterated.
But the Citizen’s Peace Watch considered the US military's so-called humanitarian projects as mere cover for military operations, saying that it do not benefit the local population.
The coalition group said US basing and intervention in the country is contributing to insecurity and leading to an escalation in conflict. It also demands the suspension of US military deployment to the Philippines, specifically the stationing of the JSOTF-P as well as the military exercises. (HG)
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