White House protest: Corruption, human rights

A similar protest was held by Filipino American activists in San Francisco, California
 
WASHINGTON D.C. – About two dozen Filipino Americans and church supporters picketed the White House to denounce human rights violations in the Philippines, hours before the meeting between Presidents Arroyo and Obama.

“We want the Obama administration to know our human rights demands. We’ve been raising even before the meeting that human rights and the case of Melissa Roxas should be on the agenda of any discussion between President Obama and President Arroyo,” Katrina Abarcar of the human rights advocacy group Katarungan said.

The only human rights issue raised in talks between the two leaders concerned Burma.

It was sure to disappoint the protesters who have been trying to raise awareness of the Roxas case in the US.

Roxas is an American citizen of Filipino descent who was allegedly abducted and tortured by Philippine military agents earlier this year.

Lawyer Arnedo Valera, Roxas’ counsel, has sent complaint letters to the White House, State Department and the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Torture.

“We want to raise awareness among US taxpayers about the kind of regime American taxes support,” Abarcar said.

Most of the protesters drove all the way from New York.

They were joined by a handful of American sympathizers from various church groups who are concerned by extrajudicial killings that target churchmen. Human rights groups said over 800 union leaders, peasant organizers, religious and journalist have been killed under the Arroyo administration.

Rona Lao left New York past midnight to be in front of the White House at six in the morning. She heard that President Arroyo was meeting President Obama and wanted her sentiments known.

“This is absolutely important because I’m a Filipino American and the issue of corruption in the Philippines is important,” she declared.

She was holding a sit-down protest along 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. But she kept her distance from the larger protest group shouting anti-Arroyo slogans.

US solons concerned with human rights, corruption

Earlier, Philippine congressmen were briefed by a panel of former lawmakers and executive branch officials who have intimate knowledge of workings on Capitol Hill.

Michael Barnes, a former congressman for the 8th district of Maryland, tried to arm the Filipino solons for scheduled meetings with counterparts in the US House of Representatives.

There were 28 congressmen in President Arroyo’s party, led by House Speaker Prospero Nograles.

“With respect to human rights and corruption those are the two key – and I’m just being very candid with you – you may not hear much about those words today on Capitol Hill but when I talk to people about Philippine-US relations, those are the principal concerns,” said Barnes.

Some Filipino congressmen bristled at the remarks.

“All of the accusations against President Arroyo and her administration have not prospered because the evidence is hearsay or inadmissible in court,” Nograles said in his “manifestation”.

“All those who accused the president, all those vocal against the president and trying to impeach the president four times are now senators,” he told the audience, that included President Arroyo’s son in Congress.

“Our media is freer than that in America,” Manila Congressman Bienvenido Abante declared.

“I don’t know where you got your reports,” he told the top-caliber panel who were invited to help them, “but when I was chairman of the committee on political rights, we were objective.”

“I think the human rights violation is bloated by the militant groups. The military has a more active record of human rights violations,” Abante insisted.

US biggest benefactor

The US remains one of the biggest benefactors of the Philippines. It is actively engaged in peace efforts in Mindanao, where they poured $312 million in 2001-2008.

RP-US trade amounts to over $17 billion a year, roughly equivalent to 10% of the Philippine’s Gross Domestic Product. When President Arroyo went to Capitol Hill to meet with members of the Philippine Caucus, a bicameral, bipartisan group of legislators sympathetic to Philippine concerns, she batted for a House bill filed last month that would allow Philippine garments made from US textiles to be exported duty-free to the US.

Ambassador Willy Gaa said earlier the deal could potentially be worth $1 billion.

Aging Filipino World War II veterans are also banking on a family reunification bill filed in both the House and Senate that would allow the veterans’ children to jump over the visa backlog so they can live in the US before their parents pass away from old age.

Former Senator Gordon Smith of Oregon cautioned the Filipino lawmakers the wait could mimic the two-decade old struggle on Capitol Hill for Filipino veterans’ equity. –Rodney J. Jaleco, ABS-CBN North America News Bureau