Bayan to question US troops presence in SC oral arguments on VFA on September 19

News Release

September 6, 2008

The umbrella group Bagong Alyansang Makabayan, through its lawyers,
will question the presence of “overstaying US troops” during the
scheduled oral arguments before the Supreme Court in the group’s
petition against the RP-US Visiting Forces Agreement. The petition
questioning the constitutionality of the treaty was filed last year
and is scheduled for oral arguments on September 19.

Apart from the issues of custody arising from the Subic Rape case,
Bayan said that it also plans to question the “duration and scope of
the seemingly permanent presence of US troops in Mindanao.”

“The continuing presence of US troops in various parts of Mindanao
already goes beyond what the Philippine Senate contemplated as
‘temporary’ during its deliberations on the VFA in 1999. The Senate
deliberations defined ‘temporary’ as being about six months. The US
troops have been in Mindanao for six years,” said Bayan secretary
general Renato M. Reyes, Jr.

Bayan pointed to the VFA as the culprit on why US troops have
overstayed in Mindanao.

“The problem with the VFA is that it does not define in clear and
uncertain terms the scope, duration of stay and the extent of the
engagement of US troops. In some ways, it is worse than the previous
US bases agreement because of its vagueness. For all intents and
purposes, an unlimited number of US troops can stay here for an
unlimited period of time, even if there are no joint military
exercises,” Reyes said.

“If that isn’t virtual basing, then what is?” Reyes asked.

The militant group looked back at the so-called Terms of Reference
during the first Balikatan 02-1 which saw the first batch of US troops
enter areas like Zamboanga and Sulu and paved the way for their
continued stay in the region.

“Even the Terms of Reference of the Balikatan 02-1 was vague. It did
not define the length of stay nor did it give assurances that the US
troops will not engage in actual combat operations. That is why we
have US troops embedded in AFP combat units who are involved in actual
combat operations, in clear violation of the Constitution,” Reyes
said.

Bayan also said that “informal basing structures” were being created
under the RP-US Mutual Logistics Agreement, a complimentary
arrangement with the VFA.

The MLSA allows US troop’s use of Philippine facilities for whatever
purposes they have during their stay here. The agreement was renewed
last year after five years in effect.

The establishment of the headquarters of the Joint Special Operations
Task Force Philippines (JSOTFP) inside Camp Don Basilio Navarro, the
air asset facility inside the Zamboanga City International Airport, a
docking area at the Majini Pier inside the Naval Forces Western
Mindanao Command, and the training facility inside Camp Arturo Enrile
in Malagutay village are all made possible under the “quasi-basing
agreement” known as the MLSA according to Bayan.

Bayan said that its researchers in Mindanao complained that the areas
and facilities occupied by the US troops are “off-limits to
Filipinos”. Even the taking of pictures is not allowed, the
researchers said.

“The VFA and the MLSA are twin agreements which re-established US
military presence in the country after the US bases treaty rejection
of 1991. It’s as if the Americans never left Subic and Clark. These
agreements violate the Philippine constitution and the nation’s
sovereignty,” Reyes said.

Bayan challenged the Senate to exercise its oversight functions and
immediately probe the presence of the US troops in Mindanao. “We
challenge the Senate to conduct an on-site inspection of the
facilities being set up by the US troops to see if the sovereignty of
the Philippines in still in effect over those areas,” the Bayan leader
added. ###

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