PCP: A Call to Prime Minister Howard on the Occasion of His 10th Year Anniversary as Prime Minister of Australia:

“Australia and the Philippines share a number of common values and objectives in their foreign policies. Both countries are democratic, share similar views on human rights and have cultural similarities in the areas of religion and language” – taken from “Philippines-Australia Relations, by the Embassy of the Philippines, Canberra, Australia, as of 21 February 2005” We Filipinos do not think for a moment that ours is a democratic country or that it is one that respects and values human rights. Not then and certainly now, especially with the State of Emergency declaration of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo on 24 February 2006. We from Philippine Caucus for Peace in Melbourne call on you, Prime Minister John Howard on the occasion of your 10th anniversary as Prime Minister of Australia to withdraw support for President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s government; indeed a very good time to distance yourself from a government that has violated the rule of law, has committed human rights violations, a government that flaunts power gained from economic and political repression. It is simply not right for the Australian government to continue supporting this government. Not only is the Macapagal-Arroyo government one that came into power through fraud and dishonesty, it is also a government that has since then terrorized its own people economically and politically. In declaring the State of Emergency on 24th February 2006, Macapagal-Arroyo has exposed her rotten core. She is very determined to stay in power, never mind if she has to copy and paste – almost word for word – the text of her most infamous predecessor, Marcos’ declaration of Martial Law in 1972. The State of Emergency proclamation is her most desperate bid to clinging on to power. She knew that a national movement calling for her resignation and ouster has been building up since she cheated herself into power in 2004. She knew that even amongst the ranks of the military, there was discontent. She knew the progressive movement was gaining grounds and no matter how she systematically tried to silence them, the clamor for change continued to grow stronger. Prime Minister Howard, your government’s support to this power-gobbler and undemocratic Filipino president has been contributing to the misery of our people. * Australia has been the major provider (overtaking the US) of training for officers and personnel of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP). The Australian government also pledged A$5 million to fund joint projects aimed at fighting terrorism and transnational crime. These have given Macapagal-Arroyo the power to crackdown on the people’s movement in the Philippines under the guise of fighting terrorism. * The Philippines is the fifth largest bilateral recipient of Australian development assistance and Australia is the second largest provider of overseas development aid (ODA) in the Philippines after Japan. But we ask you, Prime Minister Howard, is this aid really benefiting the Filipino people? On your 10th year as the Prime Minister of Australia, we urge you to exercise the true meaning of democracy and human rights by ending the Australian government’s support to a government that mocks democracy and commits human rights violations. Philippine Caucus for Peace, Melbourne (PCP)

06 Mar 2006

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