Overhaul VFA
BERNADETTE E. TAMAYO, People's Journal
THE Senate yesterday moved for the review, and possibly eventual renegotiation, of the Visiting Forces Agreement between the Philippines and the United States after US Embassy officials refused to hand over four American soldiers accused of raping a Filipina to local authorities.
Sen. Joker Arroyo said the US Embassy's action might "backfire" on the US while Senate President Franklin Drilon said American authorities' refusal to turn over the accused is not justified.
"It is to the interest of the US to relent on this question. Her intransigence will only provoke an agitation for a re-examination of the VFA and, if need be, its abrogation to correct an inequality and settle once and for all the continuing and unresolved issue that has plagued all US-Philippine military treaties in the past half century, namely, the question of custody over US servicemen who commit criminal offenses in the Philippines," Arroyo said.
Sen. Miriam Defensor Santiago has called for an emergency meeting with the LOVFA (Legislative oversight on VFA) on Friday to discuss the matter as the senators said that the US Embassy's move should prompt Malacañang and the Department of Foreign affairs to ask for a review of the VFA.
"If it is correct that the United States has submitted a note verbale to the DOJ denying the Philippine request for custody, this virtually leaves the Congress no choice but to pass a concurrent resolution asking for the termination of VFA and for a renegotiation of a new VFA more along the lines of the Status of Forces Agreement entered into by the US with Japan," Santiago said
THE Senate yesterday moved for the review, and possibly eventual renegotiation, of the Visiting Forces Agreement between the Philippines and the United States after US Embassy officials refused to hand over four American soldiers accused of raping a Filipina to local authorities.
Sen. Joker Arroyo said the US Embassy's action might "backfire" on the US while Senate President Franklin Drilon said American authorities' refusal to turn over the accused is not justified.
"It is to the interest of the US to relent on this question. Her intransigence will only provoke an agitation for a re-examination of the VFA and, if need be, its abrogation to correct an inequality and settle once and for all the continuing and unresolved issue that has plagued all US-Philippine military treaties in the past half century, namely, the question of custody over US servicemen who commit criminal offenses in the Philippines," Arroyo said.
Sen. Miriam Defensor Santiago has called for an emergency meeting with the LOVFA (Legislative oversight on VFA) on Friday to discuss the matter as the senators said that the US Embassy's move should prompt Malacañang and the Department of Foreign affairs to ask for a review of the VFA.
"If it is correct that the United States has submitted a note verbale to the DOJ denying the Philippine request for custody, this virtually leaves the Congress no choice but to pass a concurrent resolution asking for the termination of VFA and for a renegotiation of a new VFA more along the lines of the Status of Forces Agreement entered into by the US with Japan," Santiago said
posted by OlongapoCity Zambales at
8:35 AM
1 Comments:
Go ahead...cancel the VFA. Watch how fast USAID dries up, as it did when the bases left. Americans are sick & tired of beggar nations like the Philippines anyway. What do we really get out of the VFA? There is absolutely nothing the Philippines has to offer the US Armed Forces. It is a one-sided deal, in which America winds up footing the bill. So let all of the Left-leaning noisy NDF-NPA groups & the mentally unstable politicans (yea, you Miriam) do their worst. While they are all at...how about ensuring a fair trial for the accused Marines. We are all waiting to hear the truth about just what happened that night at Club Neptune & in the back seat of the van. Lets find out just what kind of girl the supposed victim is anyway. Interesting.
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Anonymous, at 1/18/2006 4:28 PM
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