Reassurance breeds hope – and the world alliance that has rallied behind the United States in the war against terrorism wants to be reassured that America and its top allies know what they are doing. They hope, in particular, that the targets and goals of the air strikes launched against the Taliban in Afghanistan are being attained and accomplished. This includes protecting innocent civilians from the missiles and bombs that are now being fired or dropped from American and British planes involved in the operations.
There are some problems, though, for America and its allies. For one, the alliance with many countries is fragile. For another, innocent civilians, like the Afghan-based workers from the United Nations, are getting killed by the missiles and bombs. And in many Muslim countries in various parts of the world, protest actions are mounting. Unless America is able to reassure its allies that the war against terrorism will not get out of bounds, anti-American sentiment might rage beyond control.
So far, Pentagon has not issued a definitive pronouncement on what missile targets in Afghanistan have been destroyed. This naturally gives rise to suspicion that the war operations have not been near-perfect, as previously claimed by America’s military officials. And where is Osama bin Laden? Has his hiding lair been spotted – and will he soon be, in the words of President Bush, be "smoked out" and captured to answer for his heinous crime?
While everybody seems fixated on the war that was launched in Afghanistan, Wigberto "Bobby" Tañada, Vicente "Ting" Jayme and other concerned civil society personages are trying to call the attention of our people, particularly our leaders, to another kind of "war" that directly involves us and is happening right here in our country. Unfortunately, this is a "war" which we are losing. The "body count," however, does not involve dead people but dead industries and lost jobs. The damage has mainly been inflicted on our economy, on the livelihood of our people.
The "war" that Bobby Tañada and company are waging involves battles and skirmishes between Filipino industries and products and the rampaging invasion of imports. If you have not noticed, all that is left of authentic Filipino products are baskets, ashtrays from Pinatubo rocks, and some other ethnic handicrafts.
Our rice comes from Thailand, Vietnam, China, Australia and the United States. Our sugar is imported. Our once famous Romblon marbles have been replaced by tiles from Europe. The only memory left of our Marikina shoe industry is the giant shoe at the Marikina River Bend. Our local cement is being swamped by cheap imports from Indonesia, Taiwan, Japan and Korea.
Then what is there to fight for? We are inclined to ask Tañada’s group such a question. It may already be a qui-xotic battle for Bobby, no matter how staunchly a nationalist fighter he is. But you do not say that to Bobby. Like a lion-hearted pugilist. Tañada will never back down. He could go down fighting.
That is why even at the height of a new war in Central Asia that could spread elsewhere, Bobby Tañada, Ting Jayme and a few other leaders of civil society, industry, workers’ groups, and peasant organizations are about to launch a movement to defend and advance Filipino industries and economic interests through the Fair Trade Alliance (FTA). The FTA will be officially launched within the next few days.
"How naïve could our leaders and policymakers be in believing that there is anything fair in free trade," remarked Ting Jayme, former finance secretary and respected business leader who also sits in the board of the Philippine Rural Reconstruction Movement which Bobby Tañada heads, during an organizational meeting of FTA.
Dean Rene Ofreneo of the University of the Philippines institute of labor studies was even more biting in his position, as he criticized Secretary Dante Canlas of the National Economic Development Authority for being too bullheaded on trade liberalization, even if it meant killing and eradicating many Philippine industries, loss of jobs, and conversion of the country into a pure consumer society.
Perhaps, former Sen. Ernesto "Boy" Herrera, who is being appointed "presidential adviser on safety nets," should confer with Tañada’s group. Earlier, the convenors of the FTA expressed concern that all government safety net programs are in peril because of a highly questionable issuance of a writ of injunction by a lower court judge in Valenzuela City against the Safeguard Measures Act or Republic Act 8800. RA 8800 provides tariff protection to industries unfairly injured by import surges and dumping.
What is the real score on the much-publicized rift between the Government Service Insurance System and the Commission on Audit over the controversial Employees Loyalty Incentive Plan? The COA had voided the ELIP, saying the retirement scheme was illegal and "morally indefensible." According to Ma. Cristina Dimagiba, GSIS-COA corporate auditor, she had questioned the ELIP even before GSIS president and general manager Winston Garcia took the GSIS helm.
I wonder, though, if COA Chairman Guillermo Carague is aware of a letter sent by a state auditor to Garcia last June 18, 2001. The letter requested Garcia to allow all COA personnel at GSIS to avail of ELIP 2000. Eventually, reportedly through alleged backroom maneuverings, the GSIS-COA team was included in the ELIP.
Now, remember the GSIS "exposé" about strange goings-on at the GSIS? Some COA personnel even staged well-publicized mass actions at that time, allegedly to air their "exposé." Whatever happened to the "exposé"? Apparently, the ELIP can make weird things happen.
THOUGHTS FOR TODAY:
You will find as you look back upon your life
that the moment when you have really lived
are the moments when you have done things
in the spirit of love. Good things you’ve done will never be lost.
Your kind act takes root
and every bit of love you sow
will come right back to you. My e-mail address: <
jaywalker@pacific.net.ph>.