By MARYA SALAMAT
Relying on US as treaty “partner” has not helped the Philippines to develop its own military capability; it is also not expected to be of help in engaging China militarily.
Sidebar: Opposition mounts as US increases military aid, sends nuclear submarine to Subic
By MARYA SALAMAT
Deceptions and misnomers cover the arrival, stay and conduct of US troops in the Philippines, as noted by progressive and patriotic groups who questioned, too, the very pretexts being used to expand US military presence in the country and in the region.
By LUIS V. TEODORO Vantage Point | BusinessWorld In a remark that has since been condemned not only by the protesting students but also by engaged academics, thinking journalists and even half-asleep politicians, Deputy Presidential Spokesperson Abigail Valte ventured the opinion that students should “concentrate on their studies rather than [walk] out of their classrooms…
By MARYA SALAMAT
“This treaty and the US have not really helped in AFP modernization. It only enhanced its dependence and derogated Philippine sovereignty.” – Satur Ocampo
Has the Visiting Forces Agreement served its avowed purpose? Or has it only reinforced the unequal alliance between the Philippines and the United States, a relationship so tilted in the Americans’ favor that to call the VFA an agreement — with all the word’s connotation of equal rights, benefits and privileges — would be a travesty?